The Last Pretender
by prolixius5
Summary: The boys are investigating on a drug lord, who recently moved to Bay City. Some one close to him may help to frame him, but no one actually seems to be what they pretend. Introducing OC. / A million thanks to ECE23 for an awesome beta-reading on this one ! !
1. Chapter 1

**The Last Pretender**

_Pun. No one is who one seems to be. In the end, all cards will have to be played somehow. Drugs, Roses and Songs. But who's gonna win in this game of life and death? Original villains and female character. Angst/Hurt. Warning: graphic description of violence and rude language in later chapters._

**1**

_It was raining in the city by the bay... a hard rain... hard enough to wash the slime..._

If you visited the nightclub where Tessa was working, you could have coped for a few minutes that night maybe, half an hour at most. Hardly any longer. The place was somewhat gloomy, much more than usual, and smokey, more than usual too. Perhaps because Alejandro was having an important business meeting with two potential new associates. They were all smoking big cigars. The whole atmosphere would have discouraged the average client.

It was about ten in the evening and the nightclub had been exceptionally closed for the day. The cleaning team had thoroughly swept every single particle of dust from each and every little hidden corner and the wooden floor was now as new and shone a dark mahogany shade. All the chairs had been pulled up onto the tables. Fifteen tables and forty five chairs. No more. The nightclub offered some feeling of intimacy for the current clients and had filled the place just the same since the opening four months before.

The tables would be waiting the next day for their next share of clients and high class drinks. Beer had no place here. Fine liqueurs and strong alcohol were served to rich and demanding guests - the word "client" was not even adequate as each individual entering_ The Rose_ was first carefully screened by Seb or Matt, the body guards serving the nightclub master, Alejandro Fuentes.

The whole place was rather dark. Except, of course, for the soft halo confirming the presence of the piano and the two persons next to it, as well as the table where Alejandro and his guests were filling the area all around them with thick clouds of Havanas.

Tessa Harriman was on stage. She was a 5'6" rather slender woman, with a few roundish curves around the hips. Her hair was as black as raven feathers and her dark brown eyes were what had struck Alejandro the very first day he had met her. Her complexion was surprisingly very pale - knowing she had Latin blood running through her veins - which made it all the more contrasting with the color of her hair and eyes.

She had been performing at _The Rose_ for nearly two months now. She was now rehearsing a new melody with the pianist, a big black man in his sixties with magical hands that were dancing on the black and white keys and producing the most entrancing tunes. From where she stood, she could not hear a word of the conversation between Alejandro and his visitors who were sitting at the other end of the big open space - and perhaps it was better she could not.

From time to time, Alejandro was turning his head, gave Tessa a stealthy glance, smiled, and then almost immediately turned his attention back to his guests. The way he looked at her made Tessa feel like she was the most beautiful girl around. Yet, she did not feel that way at all inside. The way she felt was far more negative than the appreciation the Rose's boss was granting her every day.

The 29 year old young woman tried to concentrate on the melody she was rehearsing but it seemed that tonight, she was definitely distracted and anxious. Old Bernie had failed to put her at ease although he had chosen the tunes she mastered most and enjoyed singing above all. However, even this tactic had failed.

The black musician had displayed an immediate sympathy for the newcomer since day one, and Tessa had returned the trust almost at once. They were the most appreciated attraction of the bar and clients were delighted when the lights would go down and the first notes would gently float away from the piano, even before the brunette appeared in some delicate halo next to the big black man.

But tonight she wanted to be somewhere else. Tonight she wanted to be someone else. Al wanted her around, so she had stayed. Obediently.

Yet how could she forget where she came from? What she was before? Why she had come here?

She was singing all right, but her mind was tortured by the thoughts that now kept her awake at night. Since she came here and became Alejandro's puppet, she had tried to convince herself that the real reason for the _here and now_ was the right one and this was only a temporary situation. There was a plan at hand, a purpose for all this, an objective to her willingly-accepted slavery. And yes, she felt like a slave. But not Alejandro's. Although he treated her fairly and never abused her in any way, not even verbally, she felt trapped in the role she had agreed to play.

Tonight, Tessa was so tired. Exhausted. She wanted to go home. To her _real_ home. To her former life. She turned to Bernie, gave him that faint little smile which was hers on such occasions, and resumed the song they had been rehearsing for the last couple of days.

"Sorry, Bernie, I'm not really in the mood tonight." she said, putting both hands flat on the piano.

"Don't worry, Miss Tessa." Bernie tried to reassure her, always calling her like she was the Lady ruling here. "D'you wish to try another song tonight? Maybe this one ain't the right one jus'now."

"It's OK, Bernie. Thanks. I'll manage. It's just that... never mind." she finally whispered.

She took the page with the lyrics and breathed a couple of deep breathes.

"Shall we try another one tonight?" she said inviting him to play again her favorite song.

Bernie knew she would get over this momentary bluesy mood as soon as she would start singing.

The moment his fingers hit the keys, she took a couple of deep breaths... preparing... anticipating.

Then the room filled with her warm and sensual voice, penetrating the soul of every person there. Alejandro and his visitors suddenly ended their conversation and turned to the source of the incredibly deep and jazzy voice, with her back to the public, who had started to perform a more-than-pro version of _Summertime_. It's only when she uttered with even more emotion the words _"don't... you... cry..."_ while turning around and showing her face that Alejandro's guests displayed quite a bit of astonishment, realizing that the wonderful black voice they were hearing was emanating from a frail white girl. For a moment, no one dared to move and time seemed to freeze, as if to grant all attention to Tessa's performance.

When she finished her song, the three men at the table applauded and Tessa slightly bowed her head in gratitude before turning to Bernie and catching her breath. She whispered something to herself, something that not even Bernie could hear then headed for the backstage.

Al and his guests resumed their conversation.

Bernie went on playing some soft tune, discreetly looking in the direction where Tessa had gone, hoping she would be fine. The black man had found her a bit jumpy and nervous lately and he could feel in the way she had sung tonight that she was wearing her heart on her sleeves.

S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~

(TBC)

A/N: looking for a Beta reader before posting the rest of it; I wrote this a couple of years ago and I wish it to be clean and nice to read. Any volunteer? Please? Thanks to PM me if you're interested :-)


	2. Chapter 2

_**My most sincere gratitude to you, ECE23, for your wonderful support and precious beta-reading!  
**_

*.*.*.*

**2**

_**The day after, around ten in the morning...**_

Alejandro Fuentes was sipping his tea very slowly, holding the delicate china cup with his left hand while writing down with the right one in a small black leather notebook in front of him. He was sitting alone at a table about fifteen feet away from the Steinway piano. Finally, after a couple of long gulps, he put the empty cup back on the saucer to his left and vaguely looked in the direction of the black musician shuffling through a series of partitions. The young girl standing next to the piano was obviously a bit nervous and Alejandro had no difficulty understanding why.

He tried several times to discreetly catch the attention of the young brunette to grant her a reassuring and somewhat fatherly smile but she was not paying attention to him. She was standing next to the grand piano with her hands flat on the black shiny top, with her eyes closed. She was pushing her voice on a new tune she had been rehearsing for about an hour now. Alejandro was listening to the sound of that low and sensual voice and, in his turn, he closed his eyes for a moment and tried to relax himself. However, he could not manage to concentrate for more than a couple of minutes, for the image of his young nephew Rico popped up in his mind, which disturbed him from his quiet thoughts and forced him to open his eyes again. He heaved a long and profound sigh and resumed his writing.

Alejandro Fuentes was a 54-year-old very tall man. He had spent about the last thirty years building his own drug business. He did not want to call it an _empire_, for it had little to do with the giant concern some drugs lords had established back home, in South America. Al's mother, Maria Angeles, a short and always discreet creature, had tried to keep her son away from his father's trail and raise him in the purest Catholic tradition of respect and obedience to the laws of her Holy God. But the call for adventure had been so strong for the little Alejandro that he quickly started fights at school over petty reasons at first, but mainly because he was _the Son of_ one of the local drug bosses.

At the age of sixteen, he gained his reputation of someone to be respected and accounted for, when a twenty-one year old tough guy from another town started to show off in the bar where Al used to party over tequila drinks with a couple of friends. The discussion became an argument and the argument became a dispute. In a matter of minutes, Al was being called bad names. The frail Alejandro brutally jumped on the verbal aggressor and almost strangled him, after having hit his face so hard with his bare hands that it took almost two weeks for the other guy to be able to see properly again, and start eating something solid instead of ingesting liquids with a straw.

After that memorable day, no one dared to bother him ever again and he almost immediately earned the nickname _"El Fuerte"_. He quit school to the despair of his mother and joined his father to learn the _business_.

When he reached the age of 20, he had his share of the local deals and was even sometimes solicited for deals outside his own father's _jurisdiction_. The country was big enough for many drugs lords to settle their business and Al's father had never been one of the biggest. Strangely enough, this did not bother Alejandro, who had always shown the utmost respect for his father Ricardo Fuentes, a little strong man with a high-pitched voice but a famous handshake that would make many stronger men's hand bones crack. What they had settled over the years was enough to grant the family sufficient well-being and the Fuentes name an aura of respect in the area.

The only reason Alejandro rapidly became the head of the family _and _the business at the same time was that his father died of a heart attack shortly after Al celebrated his 21st birthday. That was the key to the young man's access to majority, independence and the top of the pyramid, all at once.

All the while during his Colombian reign, _El Fuerte_ had always been regarded as _the Just_; strong, tough, but always straightforward and keeping his promises, even when he promised to take revenge on someone who had cheated or betrayed him. Then, his eyes would turn to a cold steel color and his voice would cut like a machete and everyone standing around him would shiver in anticipation of some cold-blooded and mastered retaliation.

One year after his accession to the Fuentes "throne", his younger sister, Miranda, gave birth to a son, ten months after she fell in love and got married to one of Al's best lieutenants. She had already been trying to kill herself after her husband got shot in a vendetta trap set by a rival gang, although she was three months pregnant. However, Alejandro had kept a close eye on her and managed to save her body, her soul and the baby from a premature death. She named the little boy she gave birth to after their father - Ricardo - and never left the family mansion again, refusing to live the normal life she would have been entitled to as a gorgeous young Colombian brunette.

Alejandro's heart went void when his sister finally managed to commit what she had attempted to do during her pregnancy. Their mother had died when Al and his sister were young teenagers and when in turn their father died, Al suddenly felt like his family had been cursed because of all the sins accumulated over the years, and now - being the only survivor of his generation - he felt he had to pay the price for all that had been done wrong all these years. His decision to raise his nephew Ricardo Mendoza as his own son was part of some penitence he had imposed on himself, even if he knew he would drag the little boy into an unlawful direction, whatsoever. His heart had been broken too many times and being alone in his sorrow was only natural and justified in his eyes.

He developed a cold attitude towards everything happening around and ran his business with an iron hand in an iron glove. No one would dare to contradict his decisions...ever. One day, a man came to Alejandro and offered him his unquestioned loyalty. A couple of weeks before, Al had taken care of some thug who had tried to unwisely monopolize part of his network. The thug had ended up with a nice elegant Colombian tie. The coincidence had brought justice to Sebastian, who was about the same age as Al. Fuentes had, unknowingly, avenged Seb's best friend's death at the hands of the thug and thus earned Seb's loyalty for life.

The local police had never been able to apprehend Al nor any of his employees, for the Fuentes family, besides having developed a safe and smoothly run business, had also managed to hire a couple of the best lawyers to make sure the family would not be bothered nor disturbed. Bribery and menacing were commonly used and had proven efficient over the years.

A little less than three years ago, one of his rivals found the guts to go a step further than his predecessors and made it clear he wanted to take over the Fuentes business. There were a series of attempts at negotiations which soon led to warnings, then threats. As Alejandro was certainly not the type of man to be intimidated, the rival clan found Al's soft spot and hit him hard. Fuentes had been secretly dating a young brunette - a sweet athletic girl who used to sing at night for her beloved Al in the secrecy of their hidden love nest - whom he had managed to keep isolated and protected for a long time. Yet, despite all his efforts and discretion, the others had found his girlfriend. When Al discovered her, only her once-radiant but now expressionless face allowed Al to identify the body which had apparently been battered and left to dry in the sun, not too far from Al's mansion.

His rage had never been more intense than at that moment and with the help of his faithful Sebastian, he organized a brutal vendetta. His lawyers told him this time it could be harder to escape any sort of justice and Alejandro decided to leave the place where so many dramas had forged his now-more-than-ever tempered steel attitude. He moved to Miami, along with his nephew who could have been endangered by enemies' retaliation attempts, and of course, his loyal Sebastian, plus some others who would remain at his side and help him build a new business in the States. A few stayed behind, in the shadow, and promised Al to go on ensuring supply for him. That's when he started his flower business, supposed to elegantly serve as a masquerade for another flavor hiding behind the precious and rare roses he imported from Colombia.

During his stay in Miami, he developed a strong feeling for American jazz, which seemed to be the only music able to soothe his sorrow. Soon, girls succeeded one another beside him, staying sometimes a couple of days, sometimes a couple of weeks. All of them were apparently chosen according to a few strict criteria. They were all brunettes and had _a voice_. That is, they were good singers, maybe not professional, but somehow all the girls who spent some time with Fuentes had to be able to display a good share of talents and distract him if only a little with blues or jazz rhythms which would make him feel at home again.

When Al felt the Vice guys were definitely coming too close and the menace took the form of a gorgeous and curvaceous undercover brunette named Gina, Al mysteriously lost some of his fighting spirit and did not feel like tempting the devil again. Somehow he seemed to wish for a more discreet and hidden existence, away from tragedies that had already torn his heart in several pieces.

He moved to Bay City, two years after having set foot on the American soil.

The roses business was created again on the West Coast. His contacts in Colombia had managed to remain faithful - and alive! And behind the roses business, the same white fragrance. But this time, Alejandro strangely decided to keep a low profile and to content himself with what was necessary to ensure a pleasant and comfortable life to him and his family and to prepare a satisfying legacy to Ricardo.

S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~


	3. Chapter 3

_All my gratitude to all who are following this fic, thanks for reviews and a special thanks to my wonderful beta-reader, ece23!_

_*/*/*_

**3**

When they arrived at the precinct, Hutch and Starsky only wished for one thing... well actually three things. To get rid of their jackets, head straight for the coffee pot and enjoy a warm cup of coffee. It had been pouring all night and when Starsky picked Hutch up at Venice Place, the skies were still crying heavy tears and the blonde had to rush into his partner's car to avoid being soaked to the bone. The month of September had never seemed so gray and sad. Everyone at the police station had started to be contaminated by a deep feeling of seasonal blues, if not a depression for some of them. Almost everyone, except the two detectives who were famous for their everlasting good humor - well, most of the time - and readiness to lift the local ambiance with silly jokes.

Only this time, nothing seemed to work and when they entered the squad room, the other members of the team did not even raise their heads to salute them, as they usually did. Without a word, both detectives headed for their seats, got rid of their soaked jackets on the backs of their chairs and joined around the coffee pot. Hutch lifted it but found it almost empty already. He granted a sorry look to his partner who let out a deep sigh and went back to his desk.

"Help yourself, Blondie." Starsky said, after he guessed there was only enough left in the pot for one more cup.

"Nah! You could not survive without your dosage of caffeine. Go ahead. I'll pass for now... Here, take this one." the blonde replied while pouring what was left in a cup and putting it in front of Starsky, before going around the desk and sitting at his place.

"Yeah, figures. I bet you had enough of that mixture of yours this morning. What was in there this time? Same powders as usual?"

"Vitamins and food supplements... Starsk, if only you had a decent breakfast every morning, you wouldn't need to rush on the caffeine so often."

"Hey!" Starsky replied with some indignation, "I had a complete breakfast. I just need some more juice."

"Oh yeah? What did you have?" Hutch asked, out of curiosity, although he knew what he was gonna hear and he also knew he would make a face just hearing it.

"Orange juice, just ONE cup of coffee and a sandwich."

"A sandwich? For breakfast? I don't even wanna know what you put in there?"

However, Starsky wanted to have a bit more fun with his partner, knowing what face he would make, having to listen to his morning menu.

"Huh... salami."

Hutch swallowed hard and gave his partner a disgusted look.

"I knew it! How can you swallow this in the morning? Salami? Geez, Starsk! I wonder how your stomach has not yet declared forfeit with all the junk food you swallow each day!"

"Must be my natural genetic constitution." Starsky giggled, knowing that his partner was attentively taking care of his diet every single day of the year and only ate natural and balanced meals.

Hutch heaved and gave up - just this time - aware that he would not manage to have any influence whatsoever on his friend's alimentary habits.

He was heading for the water fountain when Dobey's office door suddenly banged open and the big black man irrupted in the squad room.

"Hey, the Leisure Twins, glad you cared to join us. In my office!" he simply said. No one reacted except his two favorite detectives who had just arrived. All the officers who had spent at least a couple of years at the precinct knew that Dobey was calling them a series of names which he never used for anyone else. He even sometimes sounded more aggressive with them than with any other members of the squad, but then again, everyone also understood and acknowledged that notorious particular bond of trust and connivance if not complicity between the young detectives and the big boss.

Hutch entered first, and sat on the left chair facing Dobey's desk. Starsky quickly poured the rest of the coffee into his cup, added two lumps of sugar and entered in his turn, closing the door with his foot while stirring his coffee with a plastic spoon. Dobey opened his mouth, on the verge of shouting some angry comment about this nasty habit of the dark haired detective, but he refrained and instead emitted a very deep and heavy sigh.

Starsky sat in the right chair in front of their captain's desk, and took a long gulp from his cup.

"What's up, Captain?" Starsky asked in a happy voice, determined to brighten the moody day one way or another.

Dobey did not react and his face remained cold and focused on the file in front of him. He opened it, had a quick glance at the first page and raised his eyes to his men.

"I got a call from Captain Cardoso from the Vice Department in Miami. Seems we have a new drug lord in town. His name is Alejandro Fuentes. Apparently, he did not stay in Florida long enough for them to be able to nab him. Also seems he has managed to find himself sufficient protection to get away from being arrested. Nobody knows why he decided to come to BC. According to the data I received last night, he settled down here only about three months ago. The Vice guys in Florida never managed to catch him in the act. Although they have good men down there. This Fuentes must have pretty good connections or be particularly smart."

Starsky had given a quick side glance to his partner, for each time the case was involving drugs, he remembered the day his friend had been reported missing and then found staggering in a deserted alley, after he had been shot with heroin and had managed to escape in a state of complete shock. It had taken Hutch many days to overcome the need of the snow and some more long and painful weeks to try to free his mind of the guilt of wanting some more and the fear he could fail to resist. His partner had been the best ally he could have ever found, of course. They both knew and accepted when signing in it was part of their daily duty to go after any villain operating on the streets, but the brunette cop somehow was relieved when drugs were not involved.

Hutch did not seem to have reacted in any disturbed way to Dobey's announcement. The latter went on with his morning speech.

"You will find in there all the data available regarding Fuentes." he said while closing the file. "His current location, his whereabouts. I don't have to tell you about your job, but what we need is some kind of evidence that this flower business he has set up hides another type of fragrance. I want you two on the case." Dobey said extending his arm and giving the file to Starsky.

"Sure, Chief!" the brunette replied.

Dobey looked at Hutch, looking for some kind of silent confirmation from him too. The blonde just nodded in silence. Dobey felt relieved in a way. Losing one of his "sons" - as he sometimes called them - had always been his worst fear, considering the detectives were ready for any fight any time and did not seem to be afraid of the danger they had to face each day. They had put their lives on the line for each other, for their chief, for Huggy more than once and it could happen that the bulky man felt the need to congratulate them on a difficult mission, but somehow he never let too much of his feelings show. Maybe because he was their superior officer. He felt he needed to preserve the feeling of respect everyone had for him at the precinct. Nevertheless he was sometimes so close to openly showing the high appreciation and gratitude he had for both the men sitting in front of him right now. After all, they had saved his life and the ones of his family too. _Okay, they know, _he thought._ I don't have to tell them. The best thing to do is treat them as usual, right? Right._

"He also owns a night club, called _The Rose_." Dobey went on, scrutinizing his men, in case one of them would have a brilliant idea. Starsky frowned for a brief instant and suddenly raised an eyebrow.

"Hey! What about playing his game and pretending to be new intermediaries? We could fool him into some big fake operation and catch the whole gang... Huh, how many guys are with him anyway?" he asked while going through the file.

"Him. His nephew. A couple of hitmen for sure. Do you think you can handle that? Why don't you follow the regular procedure this time and stick to a usual investigation?" Dobey told them, fearing that another undercover story could turn bad.

"The Captain's right." Hutch replied in a vivid tone. "I'm not sure it's such a good idea. Last time we tried to nail a top dope boss, we did not last long as _Rafferty and O'Brien_."

"Don't worry, Blondie, this time, we'll choose other names. We need to get close to this guy, I feel it." Starsky said with a lot of enthusiasm, rubbing the palms of his hands as if he were already in the character's role.

"Oh yeah? Don't tell me you have been reading your horoscope again this morning? And what would the name be, this time? Please, surprise me."

"Huh... let's see... "

"And do me a favor, forget about Ed Day and Fred Knight!"

"Please, Hutch, just gimme a minute, will ya?"

"Take your time. I can be patient."

Dobey's face suddenly went red and he started fidgeting on his chair.

"Not me! Why don't you get out of my office, both of you, and decide about this cover of yours SOMEWHERE ELSE? It may not look like it, but I GOT WORK TO DO! When you have a plan that holds together, come back here and we'll set everything in motion. And don't you try to get involved in anything you can't handle. If you need more help, just yell. So get down to business, and I mean NOW!"

Both detectives jumped from their chairs and headed for the door, Hutch first, Starsky behind him.

"And would you mind closing that door?" they heard the strong baritone voice of the black man echoing through the whole squad room.

"Yes, Sir!" Starsky obediently closed the door with his hand, which was totally unusual from him.

During their briefing with the Captain, the coffee pot had been filled again to Starsky's pleasure and he poured himself another large mug in which he added two lumps of sugar. Hutch gave a disgusted look at the cup but refrained from making any comment.

"What about Tyrone and Marlene?" Starsky said amusingly, resuming his idea of an undercover scenario.

"You're kidding, right?"

"Of course... Sounds too dumb. Okay, your turn. You decide."

"Why me?" Hutch said, with a bit of indignation in his voice.

"Because I'm already busy." Starsky replied, while he sat on the back of his chair and started to read with a lot of attention the file that Dobey had given him. Without raising his head, he went on in a low voice, "Maybe before searching for names, we should talk to Huggy and see whether he's heard anything interesting about this Fuentes."

"Yeah. But I'm sure he has. You know Hug. He should think about writing a novel with all the good stories he's heard and told us about over the years. Then we'll think of a way to propose a new collaboration to that Fuentes guy. How would you plan this?"

"First, we need names. Then we talk to Huggy. We dress up and pay this Fuentes a visit, just to go on reconnaissance and get a first taste of the field."

"Starsk, this is not the army!"

"I know, but I feel we are engaging on some new battlefield, so we'd better be prepared for anything unexpected."

S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~


	4. Chapter 4

**4**

The evening Alejandro saw Tessa at _The Rose_, he was first struck by her resemblance to his sister Miranda. Same brown hair, same hair cut, same look in her big dark eyes. Before he had even heard the voice of the woman, he had made up his mind to approach her and get to know her. Some weird intuition he could not resist. When she left the place, he felt like he had to try to start a conversation with her. All the while he was feeling like a school boy, for he did not understand what was happening to him but he sure felt like he had been punched in the stomach. The thing that was most hypnotizing him was the brunette's smile, the way she had to slightly stretch the corners of her lips without opening her mouth, while her eyes were the ones expressing what she really felt.

When he reached the front door, it was raining hard and he found her there, protecting herself under a large black umbrella, probably waiting for a taxi. He stopped a couple of steps behind her and silently watched her, the way she was standing there, enveloped in a long black coat, in black high heels. He was about to approach her when she started to sing in a low voice. And he felt trapped! Her voice was so grave, she sounded like a black female gospel singer and he was all the more surprised to hear this miracle emanating from a slender young white girl. He breathed heavily a couple of times and slowly walked closer to her. When he was only two steps away from her, he very politely asked her if he could give her a lift. Surprisingly, most probably because of the rain, she accepted his offer.

While Alejandro was driving her to her hotel, he asked her about her life and he was relieved when she confessed she had been in town for a couple of days and was searching for a job. Before she got out of the car, he gave her the number where she could reach him and told her he would be more than delighted if she'd accept to perform at his night club. Two days later, she called him. Since then, she had been the main evening attraction of _The Rose_ and Al had been treating her like he had known her for years, like she was more than an employee, in fact like she was... his mistress. No one would ever have believed that in fact, Alejandro Fuentes was indeed falling in love with Tessa but at the same time, this love was more like some sort of worshiping of the girl who so resembled his beloved sister and the love he had lost back in Colombia.

After several girls who had been coming and going over the last couple of months, he thought he had finally found the perfect one, the one woman who had been able to make him shiver deep inside again, though he never let any of it reach the surface of his cold and almost inexpressive face. Though no one would ever know about it - not even Tessa, not yet anyway - he was afraid. Afraid of letting his feelings show, afraid she would leave if she knew about it, afraid of losing his authority if his men discovered he finally fell for someone and this was making him weak, afraid of having to fight with Ricardo to win her. Because he had seen his nephew's reaction when he was in the presence of Tessa, unaware Alejandro was watching. Alejandro was feeling weak, for the first time in his life, and all because of that woman. He had lost so many precious ones on the long way from home over the years. But for the very first time, he felt something he thought had died a long time ago. He smiled to himself, looked at his empty china cup, closed his little notebook and put it in his interior elegant silk jacket pocket.

_Someday - _he thought_ - someday soon, I will tell her_, he promised himself. But not today.

S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~

The evening had seemed very long and exhausting to Tessa this time - for no particular reason however. She just wanted to escape the smoky place and the company. But for Bernie, the look of Alejandro and his gang had been giving her chills all evening and she could not make out why this time more than any other time. For she had been hanging around for weeks now and she sort of got used to it.

As she had got used to the way Ricardo was looking at her and giving her regular signs that he wanted to start some approach tactics on her, she made it quite clear a number of times she was not ready to agree to any of his attempts, using all excuses she could, and what she was good at... straight and harsh looks that had made the boys want to be on another planet when she was only a teenager, each time they wanted to fool around with her. Cutting words that would make others flee even faster, fearing they could get hurt, just by a few syllables.

Yet, she was not the aggressive type of woman anyone could have thought she was. She had always been on the threshold of aggressiveness, first because of the simple fact she had been raised among four boys, and she always had to fight for a place to exist within the clan. She and her brothers loved each other very much but they always felt the urge to fight for everything, including with their sister. So she learned how to defend herself quite early, whether it was for being first at the family table, being the best at their games, being the best student, being the best... Period!

She had learned. The hard way. When she reached adulthood, she was respected, acknowledged, confident in her abilities to make it on her own. Even though her family had been and would always be there, should she need a safe and restful place.

Soon after she got her diploma, she felt the need to get away from her roots. So she moved to San Diego, a bigger place than her small town of origin, lost somewhere in Arizona. She wanted to be part of something special. She wanted to be accounted for in the big family of special citizens. She wanted recognition. After a couple of years, she had managed to reach the goal she had set for herself, but lately something totally unexpected happened which should have shattered her beliefs and confidence for ever. The trauma should have destroyed her balance and left her freezing to death as if she had been abandoned on an iceberg drifting in the middle of the Arctic.

She had survived. Against all expectations. She had shown to herself first - and to all around - she was no fragile little woman who needed constant assistance and protection. She had made it through the rain and snow and blizzard.

And now she was here. Ready to prove again that she could make it. For _this_ was a special place for her to be. _This_ was where she had chosen to come. Freely. Knowingly. To accomplish one final task before she could move on with the rest of her life. Before she could forget. Before she could forgive.

She briefly touched her neck, rubbed the material of the turtleneck she was wearing and sighed profoundly. She discreetly peeked at the men sitting around the large table. There was Alejandro, dressed in a black suit and plain tie as usual; Ricardo, wearing a suit but no tie. This was his silent way - for now- of being in rebellion against his uncle, nice and soft, before he could make a more obvious move, someday. Two other men were at the table, black men she did not know and had never seen before, most probably new contacts for Alejandro's business. Standing behind, in the background but not too far from Al were Seb and Matt, the two body guards who were never far away and always alert of every single movement in the vicinity.

Tessa breathed long deep breaths and turned to Bernie who granted her one of his large smiles. He was the only one at _The Rose_ she really and completely felt comfortable with. He was never asking questions, he never looked at her in a devious way, he was always trying to find a nice word to comfort her when she felt depressed - which had been the case more than often lately - he was, to put it simply, her best friend around here. She smiled back as sincerely as she could and put the scores in one single pile she left on the piano before looking at Bernie again.

"What do you say we call it a night, huh? I'm dead tired, Bernie." she said in that low tone the black man always joked with her about. The first time he had met her, he had told her she had a great voice for gospel. Yet, here she was, singing in a nightclub and losing her time and energy and wasting a great career, or so Bernie said.

"Yeah, Miss Tessa. You gotta get some rest. We ain't in for a race, ya know. Hey, what da ya think we try somethin' easy tomorrow, like... huh... _Memories_ or somethin' huh?"

Bernie's voice sounded like Louis Armstrong's. Even if he did not have one bit of resemblance with the famous jazz celebrity, you could have easily been fooled by his voice when he spoke, as he had the same hoarse and low-pitched tone. His physical look, however, was a lot different; Bernie was a sixty-two year old tall guy, built like a fortress but moving like a panther, so smoothly that, at times, it seemed the image of him was being broadcast in slow motion.

"Sure... Why not. Good night, Bernie and... thanks."

"For what, Miss Tessa?"

"For... taking care. You know. Well,... I... I'll see you tomorrow. Good night, Bernie," she said as she suddenly felt the need to be someplace else. She smiled one last time to the black man sitting behind the piano and headed to the table where Al and his guests had been discussing for almost an hour.

She approached Alejandro who gave her a discreet nod to come closer. She quickly whispered something into his ear and he briefly and silently nodded. She left their company, grabbed her coat and her purse and headed for the door. Ricardo's eyes were following her all the way as she exited the nightclub and he smiled to himself at the thought that had just crossed his mind. But no one noticed.

When Tessa finally found herself breathing the fresh night air, she started to shiver uncontrollably for a few minutes. Her head was full of memories she did not want right now.

_When she had thought it was safe to do so, soon after they had met, and because of Al's completely confident attitude towards her, always gentle, polite, full of care and attentions, Tessa had told Alejandro she had made it out about his little flower business and the clandestine, less-than-legal transactions behind it. Because of the particular strong fragrance of the roses, no one had suspected that the crates were hiding regular deliveries of the purest cocaine on the American territory. Surprisingly, Alejandro had not even tried to hide it from her at all. When she then confessed she was hooked on some anti-blues pills, as she mildly put it, he even promised to give her regular doses when she told him she had needed them after some personal drama she preferred not to give any details about._

_The rare moments she spent with Alejandro alone were paradoxically the only occasions she could relax. She discovered the man was the gentle - and even a bit hung-up - one. He had freely confided to her lots of details about his family, back in Colombia, where he was born. About his father who had built a small empire in the drug business. About his mother who was trying to keep her son away from a dangerous business. Eventually, both Alejandro and his nephew, Ricardo, had ended up here, in Bay City after a short transition period in Miami. Alejandro was thirteen years older than Rico. He had started a small business on the West Coast, importing top quality roses from a Colombian producer. Ricardo, who had attended college longer than Al, was taking care of the financial part and local distributors. But Al had always been and remained the main negotiator._

_It seemed that some tacit complicity had grown between Tessa and Alejandro. He would give her the pills she needed. She would discreetly spy on Al's employees and report what she had heard. Not much in reality, but still, he'd appreciate her dedication and apparently efficient discreet spying abilities. She was good at it! She also seemed to know the city and its inhabitants very well and Alejandro had soon felt she could be useful and help him locate possible new customers in some areas where his business had not expanded yet._

Then she regained control of her present situation and headed for her car.

_Okay, lady, you got yourself into this, now you gotta get to the end of it, no matter what happens_, she thought. She pulled the collar of her coat up her neck and walked to her car. _How and why did I get in this mess? I thought it would be easier... and most of all, I never thought it would last for so long. Gee, I'm not sure I will hold on much longer. I gotta talk to the man in charge, I gotta tell him I want out, I can't take it anymore. This Ricardo guy is the one I fear most... and I don't know why. Alejandro is the one I was supposed to ... Oh God, I'm so tired. Too much stress, not enough sleep, too much of... I can't even think straight anymore. Well... I know there is someone out there whom I can count on, but how do I get to him? How do I make a sign that I don't feel up to the job anymore? How is he gonna take it?_

When she reached her car, she had calmed down and sat behind the wheel. Before she started the ignition, she was whole again, as if walking in the fresh air had invigorated her somehow.

_Okay, girl, go home, get some sleep and tomorrow, you're back on what you came here to do. OK? Okay._

And, one part of her having convinced the other she was back on her feet, she drove to her apartment, without any knowledge that something had changed there a long time ago that she had not noticed before. Yet, this time, being more aware and suspicious than ever, she would. And this would change the course of events more than she had expected.

S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~


	5. Chapter 5

**5**

The city was still painted in some washed out greyish color. Everyone in town was hoping for a truce in the rainy season, at least for a day or two. September had never seemed so depressing. When Hutch and Starsky arrived at the Pits, they tried to shake their clothes and get rid of most of the water that had poured on them during the short distance they had walked - or rather run - between the Torino and the Pits' back door. Even choosing to enter that access had not prevented them from being totally soaked when they entered the bar.

"Hey hey, my man, look what the cat's dragged in!" Huggy spoke at the top of his voice when he saw the two detectives enter his establishment and head for a table at the back.

Huggy approached them slowly, almost like a feline assessing his future lunch. He was obviously in a very good mood and the positive feeling that seemed to emanate from him was reinforced by the flashy orange shirt he was wearing. He looked at both detectives with a funny smile on his face, as his friends were desperately trying not to swamp the place. Starsky's curly hair was plastered down around his unpleasantly grinning face. If there was one thing in the whole world the brunette hated more than anything, it was being cold and wet. He sneezed a couple of times and uttered some curse that made the other two smile to themselves.

Hutch was not in a better shape. His mid-long blonde hair was hanging around his indigo blue eyes which made him look like a touching golden Labrador puppy.

"I was about to ask you what could possibly be brought to my favorite clients that could dissipate the depressive look from your faces, gentlemen, but I guess two good hot toddies would be the best option."

"I think something like that would be nice." Starsky said in a rush right before sneezing a couple of times again.

"With or without?" Huggy answered.

"With or without what?"

"A liqueur."

"No thanks, Hug. Just a soft warm drink. We're on duty."

After they had got rid of their wet jackets, Huggy headed for the kitchen and ordered the drinks for his friends. Starsky started to sneeze again.

"Gee, I hate the rain." he said.

"Yep. Looks like it's gonna last for a while. Why do you say we quit and go to Bolivia on vacation?" the blonde replied with an amused smile.

"Hutch... I don't think Bolivia would be the place I'd choose. And would you please stop mentioning that place. What about the Riviera?"

"What Riviera?"

"The French one," the brunette said.

"France?"

"Okay, forget it. Anyway, we couldn't afford it." Starsky said. He went on sneezing again.

"Unless we go and rob some banks in Bolivia first."

Starsky pulled a tissue from his front jeans pocket.

"Yeah... sure..."

Huggy came back and looked at them.

"You two really look like you need a vacation." The black man laughed.

"How do you know?" Hutch replied. "Do you have a good idea? Now, let's be serious for a moment, Hug, we are on a new case and Dobey wants this to be solved by yesterday, if you know what I mean. Have you heard about Alejandro Fuentes?"

Huggy seemed to think intensely for a moment and looked at the detectives with an intrigued smile.

"Yo, have I heard about Alejandro Fuentes? News is fast, buddies. The guy settled down in the neighborhood only a couple of months ago. Directly imported from Miami. Runs a business of a rare variety of roses. He's also the happy owner of a very switched-on night club called _The Rose_. And the guy seems to be fond of young brunettes with a lot of character and possibly a nice voice to perform on stage."

Starsky raised his eyebrows then frowned. His eyes were sparkling in amusement.

"Huggy, I may have known you for years, but you still manage to amaze me. How do you know everything so fast?"

"Hey, whadaya think, my man, how da ya want me to deserve _mah_ reputation of "The Bear" if I'm not able to nose around and lend a very attentive ear to what's cookin'? But don't ask me to tell ya my sources or any of my secrets."

"Don't worry. Now, Hug, what do you know about his... side business?"

"I've heard that he did not want to expand in Florida. Though it seemed to me that the place is ideal for his little transactions with South America. For whatever reason, he decided to come here instead. Dunno why."

"Do you know by any chance ... -_ atishoo!_...- what kind of network he has organized already?" Starsky asked, between a series of sneezes.

"He supplies some local distributors but in my opinion he is not the biggest boss in town. If you want my professional opinion..."

"Go ahead, make our day!" Starsky replied amusingly.

"The guy has had enough of the business, man."

Hutch raised an eyebrow, somewhat perplexed. Huggy usually was a predictable and reliable source of information on anything happening in town, but this time, the black man had succeeded in taking him by surprise. Huggy did not necessarily have the psychological profile that Hutch was expecting to find at the Pits. But then again...

"Hug, have you suddenly become a psychic or something?" Hutch asked.

"Nah... But... how could I say this... a guy like him, with all the connections he has... he should've buried all the competition down here in a matter of weeks. Which is not the case. Last time I heard through the grape vines, he wanted to make one last deal, but no record to be broken. I think he's got enough money already to retire to some shiny place."

Hutch was staring in front of him as an idea popped in his head.

"Hug, how much do you think he would jump on a deal?"

"What do you have in mind, Blondie?" Huggy had a vague idea where the blonde detective was leading at.

"What if _**we**_ go into business with the man. How far do you think he would be ready to go? I mean, if we propose something too big, according to what you've just said, he might reject us."

"Yo, my man, do you mean you intend to get involved in some undercover adventure with these guys?"

"Yeah, that's the general idea." Hutch confirmed very quietly.

"I gotta tell ya, be careful, Blondie. He's got a couple of tough guardian angels around all the time. And these weasel faces don't look like sweet angels to me. You'd better watch out your butts and get the most solid cover ya can get."

Starsky gave a reassuring look to the black man. He thought of all the occasions when Huggy was there for them, more than a friend, someone they could trust a hundred percent, even more than that. He remembered the day he had found Hutch crawling down a deserted alley, his veins full of heroin. Huggy had accepted to hide both men at his place, during the time necessary for the blonde to cope with withdrawal symptoms and for the brunette to find and bust Monk and the gang that had hurt his friend so bad. He had offered shelter and discretion more than once, willingly most of the time, and for that the two detectives would always be grateful and ready to give him a hand whenever the black man would ask - if he ever asked. Because the least one could say is that Huggy also had a developed sense of pride of his own. On the other hand, he would not hesitate one second to get into trouble because he had decided to help people who mattered to him, even to the point of getting hurt himself.

Starsky appreciated all Huggy had just told them and the fact that he was showing concern for their safety.

"Don't you worry, Huggy. We'll be all right. We'll pay a visit to Fuentes at his night club. And then we'll propose him a business deal he will not refuse."

Hutch went on with his idea.

"We will call you as soon as we're ready to make our move, and tell you which names we'll use. In case anyone sneaks around, you'll know what to answer... let's say... for securing our cover a bit more."

"No problemo, Gringo."

The waitress brought the toddies and they celebrated their friendship in their usual way, just by sharing a good moment together, around the table, talking about the new investigation, about the way the detectives could set the best trap to bust Fuentes. Their conversation soon turned onto the black man's anecdotes he never failed to narrate to the detectives, and which would feed their files for another case, later on.

When all glasses were empty, Starsky had finally stopped sneezing and seemed to feel a bit better. Both cops stood up, grabbed their jackets, which were still somewhat humid, and said their goodbyes to their friend.

"C'mon, Starsk. Let's do some brain stretching before jumping into the pool. Bye Huggy. We'll keep in touch."

"Bonne chance, both of you!" Huggy called out laughing as his friends were heading for the exit.

Huggy watched the two detectives and he silently made a prayer that nothing would go wrong with them this time.

S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~


	6. Chapter 6

**6**

Ricardo Mendoza lit a cigarette, took the first long and deep inhalation and let the smoke slowly flow through his nose and mouth. He was sitting behind the wheel of his black Lincoln, parked in front of _The Rose_, waiting for a report which would perhaps help him carry on the plan he had been setting in motion in his head for years. The corners of his lips initiated a brief smile, but an ironic one, hiding much more than a long hoped-for satisfaction, nesting a long-hidden anger. He had held every single impulse of aggressiveness or rebellion carefully prisoner of a so-polished controlled attitude.

Now the time had come to let out just about enough to make his entourage understand he was not to be considered as _The Little One_ any longer. His first disciple had been Matt, willingly and totally dedicated to his master. And he never doubted there would be more along the way, soon... very soon.

Little Ricardo had been raised by his uncle Al, with the view to making a "tough" guy out of him. Though he was the son of Al's best lieutenant and the nephew and potential heir to the Fuentes heritage, Ricardo Mendoza was often referred to as "_El Niño_", perhaps because of his short stature, but most certainly because everyone had seen the little boy for so many years, as a kid, following Alejandro almost everywhere, mimicking him in every way, trying to get the attention of everyone around and often exploding in uncontrollable rage when no one would recognize his modest achievements as a genuine member of the clan, when he reached the age to take care of certain aspects of the _business_.

He always paid his respects to _El Fuerte_ and never questioned any of his decisions. The latter even made him abandon his country and secret love, a young girl from a modest family he had to visit once for lack of "protection" payment. He reluctantly left his love behind, yet was so excited about the prospect of new doors opening to him in the United States that he actually left everything else without the slightest trace of a regret. He was soon to be disenchanted when Al did not let him help expand the business as he had expected to.

In the years that followed, Rico had been holding the frustration carefully hidden deep inside his heart and was waiting for the right moment to either present the new reality to his uncle or to take even more radical measures.

In the eyes of everyone, Ricardo was the perfect nephew, obedient and serving Alejandro with utmost devotion and respect and learning with great attention all there was to learn about the business.

For Rico, it was just a matter of time before he could finally take his place in the hierarchy and be acknowledged as a true representative - even more than that - of the Fuentes empire. He had learned patience and indeed, patience was his most valuable asset right now.

The only detail which had disturbed the past few weeks' tranquility had been the arrival of Tessa in the neighborhood and the fact that she was Alejandro's property, or so it seemed. She had appeared one evening, out of the blue and all of a sudden, his uncle had not been able to take his eyes off her, even though Ricardo was pretty sure that she never shared his uncle's bed. He could not clearly make out what her purpose was to be there - to sing each evening until most of the clients would grant her a standing ovation, to share some time with Alejandro at _The Rose_, to walk with him along the beach. And yet Rico had the weird impression they never shared a night together, and this was bothering him more than he would admit.

He was strangely and irremediably attracted to Tessa. Since the first day he saw her. There was something about the way she talked - with so few words and always in a low voice, and the way she usually behaved, moving as if speed was her worst enemy and could jeopardize her health - that had turned his head even though he was known to be the cold-blooded type.

He had made a few attempts at inviting Tessa for a drink. She had turned him down, politely, coldly, if not roughly at times, making it clear she was Al's. This had made him even more irritated and keen to take revenge on his uncle, first because he was not allowed to help in the business as he wanted to, and then because there was some beauty there who would not even look at him, but ignored him or worse, rejected him. His pride could not take it and a bitter feeling of disgust slowly grew in Ricardo's heart.

Only a few months before Tessa arrived, he had managed to discreetly put Matt Perkins on Alejandro's path, while his uncle was looking for a body guard replacement. Ricardo considered Perkins to be his secret weapon. After the Miami failure - what Ricardo indeed considered to be a master failure, because Al had only stayed there for two years and decided he wanted to move West - Ricardo started to carefully take care of his future, positioning his pawns here and there, gathering valuable recruits around him and waiting in the dark, like a patient cat waiting for the mouse to come out of the hole. He was waiting for the final strike.

Perkins had been instructed to spy on Alejandro Fuentes since day one and had done a good job at that. Because he had been trained in the most perfect way there was, Perkins had revealed himself to be the most perfect recruit for Rico. Every day they were exchanging details and impressions and feedback and finally Ricardo had entrusted a special mission to Perkins. What he had asked Perkins to do allowed him to keep an eye both on his uncle and Tessa and be aware of what was really happening between the two. What had been reported until now had only been disappointing, although he had hoped for a real good reason to be mad at one of them... or both. No such thing for now.

Perkins was a tough guy, tall, strong, stately; but somehow, he gave the impression of being fragile sometimes - at least to the trained eye - perhaps because of his reaction when spoken to in an aggressive manner. He then started to look at the floor and his shoulders seemed to lower accordingly. His attitude was then more the one of a lectured kid than the one of a drug lord body guard. What made most people, except Ricardo that is to say, fear Perkins was his strong build, square jaws and the extraordinary swiftness of his reactions and way of pulling his gun. It was common knowledge in the _milieu_ that more than one never saw the fist that smashed their face or heard the sound of the bullet that hit them before it was too late. Sometimes, Ricardo had thought of his favorite ally as "Speedy Matt", which was a well earned nickname, if ever.

That's why he had entrusted Perkins with that special mission a couple of weeks ago. Even though it had not given the expected results yet, Ricardo never doubted that this would finally bear its fruits and he would be more than pleased with the feedback. The only question now was _when_ he would collect the fruits of his patience. Maybe tonight. He opened the window to throw his cigarette on the road and closed it again. The sky had been reluctantly granting a truce for a few hours but more rain clouds were traveling from the horizons and the city would soon be the victim of the skies' fury one more time.

S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~


	7. Chapter 7

**7**

Evenings...mornings... there never was a moment during the day when she would feel better.

When she entered her apartment – or more precisely the apartment Alejandro was renting for her – she felt like she was entering a no man's land. She did not feel at home at all. Even though he had let her choose the furniture to make herself comfortable, she always felt like she had cheated, which was the case. She HAD cheated, but she had to, it was meant to be.

Yet, feeling surrounded by furniture which was not hers made her feel like she was trapped within the dull walls of a prison. She suddenly felt out of breath and she quickly headed for the kitchen corner and poured herself a large glass of water from the tap. After a couple of gulps, she caught her breath and looked around. She put the glass in the sink and headed for the couch where she let her body fall heavily. Her head was leaning against the armrest and her eyes were focusing on the bulb of the elegant lamp on the side table. She would have remained there for a while, lost in dark thoughts, if she had not noticed a tiny detail, something which had no reason to be, something that made her shiver and sit up in a very fast movement. She turned and leaned to get a closer look under the lamp, whose foot was decorated with bronze ivy leaves rising to the top of the lamp, engulfing the bulb in a delicate design.

Delicately hidden within the design, Tessa saw what she would never expect to find: a tiny microphone.

_OK, I should have expected this. Now the question is: who did this? Alejandro? I don't think so. I found the guy to be eventually rather honest, if I don't take into account his snow business. Ricardo? Yeah, may be, I never could stand the nerd, I can't explain it but he sort of gives me the creeps. One of the body guards? Most probably, yes, one of them, acting on behalf of Ricardo. Sebastian looks kinda cool but I really can't stand that Matt Perkins. His smile looks so fake and he gives me the impression he is always on to something bad. Now, I guess there is more than one of these little suckers! I'd better check the whole place. Good for me I live alone in here and I never shared my thoughts openly with anyone, either in the apartment or on the phone. Gee, I could have been spotted and then what? Big trouble. Right, let's hunt for the little spying bastards now..._

And thinking so, she slowly stood up and went to the radio. She turned it on and put the volume at a high level to cover her moves across the apartment and prevent anyone listening and making a guess at what she was doing.

She first thoroughly checked the living room and the kitchen corner. Another microphone had been installed under the little bar counter. Then she moved on to the bedroom and found another one hidden under the telephone set. _Figures! Clever guys._ Finally she thought she'd better check the bathroom; after a detailed search, she found a fourth one behind the mirror. The devices were so small that they could practically be hidden in the smallest spaces. She hesitated to check the rest room, hoping whoever did this was not evil enough to go that far. After a very detailed search, she did not manage to find any there.

_At least I have some privacy here_.

_What now? For sure, I cannot take them away. I'm here to pretend. So let's pretend I did not notice anything._

She came back to the little bar in the living room, opened the cupboard, took a bottle and poured herself a small glass of Martini, added two ice cubes and a slice of lemon. Before drinking, she seemed to remember something and put the glass back on the counter. She walked to the couch where she had left her purse and took a pill box from it. She took one white pill and headed back to the counter to fetch her glass. She put the pill in her mouth, smiled for a brief instant and swallowed it with a long sip of her cocktail. Then she sat again on the couch and smiled to herself.

_So far so good,_ she thought. _It was high time they made a move at me. Maybe now things will go a bit faster and I can get out of here._

She put the glass on the table in front of her and leaned back on the couch, still smiling. But her smile was just a reflex, to let go of the stress, the fear, the pain. Not the pain she was feeling now, for she was feeling none. But the pain she remembered, the one lurking in the depths of her memory, the one that left scars, the one that almost took her life once, it seemed like ages ago.

She closed her eyes and tried to fight away the souvenir of what she had gone through. But there was no way she could prevent the images from popping up in her mind, like the million hoppers in Egypt. They kept coming and begging for more, more of her attention, more of her denial. But she was too weak now to fight them off.

_She was walking in the street, alone, heading back for home. It was dark already and only a couple of almost defective street lamps were transforming the area into a zombie zone where it was nevertheless safe to walk, the area where she lived had always been safe. She was almost in front of her place when she saw him, walking towards her. And she smiled. He had finished early that day, which meant they could spend a quiet and long evening at home, at last._

_When she was only a couple of feet away, a big shadow suddenly emerged from the corner she was passing by and grabbed her, putting a knife in front of her throat. The man in front of her froze, then very slowly walked to her and her attacker, speaking in a reassuring tone, trying to disarm a critical situation. He usually was very good at it but this time, the shadow seemed to be coming right from a mad terror movie and pushed the knife close to her flesh. She could feel the cold of the blade, she was scared but she did not show it._

_The man in front of her stepped a bit closer, slowly, his hands in front of him in a gesture of peace. The last thing she remembered was a biting pain in her throat, she could not utter a sound, she fell and darkness wrapped her in her cold blanket._

_When she woke up, she was in a hospital, with a thick bandage around her neck, an IV line in her arm and no one by her side to watch her sleep._

_All they could tell her later was they were sorry. He was gone. He had tried to save her from the madman, but right after she fell, they engaged into a merciless fight and he had been stabbed several times. When the paramedics arrived, it was not too late for her._

_But it had been too late for HIM._

Her hand moved to her neck, covered by her turtleneck. She let the tears flow in silence, swallowed hard a couple of times and opened her eyes.

_Snap out of it, girl, you'd better be careful if you wanna live through this! You cannot change the past. And you only have a little idea of what's gonna happen, or what may happen. So get a grip and move on. This is now. Watch out, you still have a job to do._

She drank the rest of her glass, stood up, put the glass in the kitchen sink and headed for the bathroom. While she got undressed, she started to sing for herself, out loud, the song she loved to sing when she felt bluesy like tonight. She sang her heart out, with all the emotion she could put in her performance, just for the good feeling that it would generate inside of her, for the good memories it would bring, for this was the song he loved most hearing from her.

The man with the headphones started to smile when he heard the voice of the young girl. She had such a wonderful voice. However he never felt sorry thinking that one day, his boss could ask him to take care of her. And without a sigh, he turned the volume of his equipment a bit louder and listened to the words...

_Amazing grace...how sweet the sound that saved a wreck like me..._

Yeah, like you... indeed... but I will take care of that... all in due time.

S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~


	8. Chapter 8

**8**

"You don't really wanna wear this, do you?" Hutch inquired to his partner.

"Why do you ask? What's wrong with this outfit?" Starsky replied looking at his reflection in the mirror.

"Starsk, this was good for Vegas, not for this mission. We're supposed to be taken seriously, remember?"

"I AM serious!" the brunette hit back, a bit surprised.

"Now, c'mon, pick up something more... I don't know... more..."

"More what?"

Hutch could not find the proper word to say to his partner who was posturing and assessing his look. He was wearing a nicely cut white outfit, the "George-Straight" kind of suit, like the one he was wearing when they went to Las Vegas to try and snatch the show girls murderer. The hat he put on his head to finalize his undercover disguise gave him the look of a bad gangster TV show. With the Humphrey Bogart smile he put on his face, this definitely made Hutch grin and frown.

"More serious!" Hutch finally said in an exasperated voice.

"Okay." Starsky sighed while searching on the shelves for another disguise. "Hey, why don't we dress like we're going to the Tribunal? You know, suit 'n tie."

"Yeah...good idea... and shoes."

"Of course... You wanna go barefoot?"

"I meant _shoes_, Starsk... not Adidas!"

"Yeah, I got that!... Hey, what about this?" the brunette asked while showing his blonde partner a dark grey suit.

"That's perfect! Now would you please hurry? We still gotta go to the precinct to finish those reports on the jewellery burglary and hand them to Dobey. Then we gotta see Huggy and fill him in. And I wanna go through the Fuentes file one more time before we make our first move."

"What about our names? Did you think of something for you?"

"Starsk... please... pick up something, will ya?"

Hutch was fidgeting even more impatiently.

They had been in the shop for more than forty-five minutes and in that amount of time, Starsky had changed at least four times, picking up one outfit after another and all of them were making him look like a movie star rather than a believable drug dealer.

When he finally made his choice, they both got dressed back in their regular clothes: dark brown pants, cream shirt, a brown overshirt and brown shoes for Hutch; black shirt and tight jeans, jacket and same old white and blue Adidas for Starsky.

They rushed to the Torino under a thin drenching rain. Starsky started the ignition and headed to the Central. They kept silent for a moment, but Hutch knew his partner would not keep silent for long. There was a sure thing about the brunette: if he was in a good mood he would talk, just about anything, just for the pleasure of talking. For Hutch, this was a sign everything was all right, even though, at times, he would have preferred some moments of silence and meditation. The blonde was more of the introverted type, calm on the outside most of the time, except when things would turn agitated or difficult. Then he would turn into an uncontrollable blonde tornado which nothing could master but his partner.

The Torino engaged in the heavy traffic and headed to the Pits where they had decided to spend a while and relax before rushing into their new mission. Huggy's bar had always been a place where the two detectives enjoyed spending a couple of hours. The black man had a way of entertaining his guests in a way that made everyone feel at ease and comfortable. Besides, this time, they had to make sure they had all the elements necessary to blend in in their new role as... well as dope intermediaries about to propose a new deal to the guy they wanted to bust. The only detail was that they had not yet decided upon their undercover names. Starsky briefly turned to Hutch who was staring in front of him and had not uttered one word since they had left the shop.

"Did you get a name?" the brunette asked.

"Huh... What?" Hutch asked, suddenly awaking from his reverie.

"A name? For our cover?"

"Huh... not yet. My mind is a big blank for now. And you?"

"Yep. I got one. Thought of it last night."

"I'm curious? What's it gonna be then?"

"Mike Burnett."

Hutch looked at his partner for a moment then again at the road, where the traffic was getting a bit more intense now.

"Yeah... Sounds genuine enough."

"Ya think so?

"Yeah, sure. While you're at it, try to find one for me, will ya?"

Starsky smiled and glanced at his blonde partner.

"What about... Gary...huh... Gary..."

"Gary what?"

"Gary Cooper."

"Starsky! You're nuts, you know that?"

"Just kidding. Let's try Gary..."

"I don't really like _Gary_."

"Okay, let's try..."

"Brett."

"Brett? What kinda name is that?"

"I like the sounds of that."

"Sounds too British, man."

"Okay, you pick it up, since you know better."

"Don't be angry with me."

"I'm not, Starsk. It's just that this name business is not really important. What is important is that we manage to nail the guy and his gang."

"Yeah, sure, but would you go there and introduce yourself as the Blond Blintz?" Starsky replied, very amused now.

"Nah, don't talk nonsense. Hey... I got it! What about Johnny..."

"John Wayne?"

"Starsk, gimme a break!"

"Okay... Sorry... I'm hungry and when I'm hungry, I can't think straight."

"Stop trying to think then!"

Starsky giggled and concentrated on the road. They had almost arrived and Starsky parked the red and white Gran Torino close to the back entrance. He shut off the engine and turned to his blond friend.

"We also gotta pick another car than mine when we go and meet this Fuentes... Too flashy."

"I don't believe what I've just heard." Hutch replied with a big surprised look.

"Why?"

"Your beloved Torino? Too flashy? It's the very first time I ever heard you admit it. What happened to you?"

"Hutch..."

"Yeah?" Hutch's voice was now amusingly mocking.

"Nuthin'." Starsky mumbled.

When they entered the Pits, they saw Huggy leaning on the bar, with his head leaning on his hands. They quickly walked to their friend. Huggy heard them approaching and raised his head.

"Hey hey, the Daltons!" he said in a strangely clear voice.

"What's the matter, Hug?"

"Nothing... Let's say that I should remember to plan for a day off the day after a celebration."

"What celebration? Did we miss something?" Starsky asked, trying to pretend to be disappointed they were not invited.

"Oh, Turquet came by last night. He's... he's getting married."

"What?" both detectives exclaimed in a perfect synchronicity.

"Yeah,... what do you know, huh? Who would have thought? Well, anyway, we... had a preliminary stag night. He sure wants to organize one with you two, guys, when you're done with your current mission. Let's say we took a bit of advance... Ouch!" he finished holding his temples.

"Turquet? Getting married? Yeah, that's great!" Starsky almost shouted.

"Please... Starsky... could you refrain your enthusiasm from reaching new decibel records?" Huggy painfully said.

"Sorry."

"Are you feeling well enough to get us two beers?" Hutch asked in a perfectly low and soft tone, showing a big frank smile on his face. Of course, he knew about hangovers; Starsky and he had had more than one.

"Sure, Blondie."

He turned on himself to fetch two glasses and started to pour the clear bubbling liquid into each one, and handed them to his friends.

"Here you go."

"Thanks, man." Starsky almost whispered with a large smile on his face.

They drank in silence for a moment, giving short glances at Huggy.

"You know what, you look a bit pale. Maybe you should go upstairs and let Carla run the place today." Hutch said in a truly compassionate voice.

"Pale? Very funny, Blondie... But maybe you're right. I don't even wanna know how we're gonna end when we go through the real thing with you, guys."

"Another day... another story... One step at a time." Starsky said.

"And please, Curly, don't try any more philosophy. 'Coz I feel like I'm gonna thr-..."

Huggy never finished his sentence. He rushed and disappeared in the men's room.

The detectives looked at each other, a bit worried.

"It's all a matter of distribution between the liquid quantity absorbed and the body weight. Huggy is too thin to cope with big quantities, that's all." Starsky seriously claimed.

"Starsk..."

"What?"

"Stop this. Or you're gonna give me a headache too."

Starsky kept silent for about thirty seconds, then turned to his friend.

"Do you think we're gonna get this guy?"

There was no need to explain who he was referring to.

"Yeah. Don't worry Starsk. Remember, he came on OUR territory. And guess who he's gonna find on his way? Me and thee. As always."

"Me and thee..." whispered Starsky, holding his glass on the bar with both hands and slowly caressing away with one thumb the mist that had formed on the outside surface.

They drank in silence, thinking about the scenario they were gonna put in motion two days later. They had done this before. Yet, both officers never presumed any mission was easy, as any last minute glitch could jeopardize their cover, or they could get hurt in the process, or someone else could get hurt. Failure was just the only option they never envisaged. Maybe it was their strength. Some would say they were sometimes reckless. Their Captain thought they were a bit out of line sometimes, but yet going by the Book.

Starsky sighed a couple of times, swallowed the rest of his beer in one gulp.

"C'mon, Blondie, let's check on Huggy before going and then, let's hit the sack. I don't know why but I have a feeling this mission is not gonna be a vacation cruise. We'll go through the file again tomorrow. I'll bring the croissants to your place tomorrow morning, okay?"

" 'Kay.' Hutch simply answered. He felt tired too and was longing for a good night sleep.

The continuous filthy weather seemed to have drained all the energy from most of the inhabitants for the last couple of weeks.

Huggy came back, reassured his friends he would be all right.

The detectives decided they would call him the next day to fill him in with the last details of their undercover story, for he was in no shape to listen to anything right now. They said their goodbyes and headed for the Torino. The rain was even denser than when they came in. Like it was trying to wash away the dirt.

But the city would have a hard time getting rid of some of the usual dirt, especially the one who was spying on a girl who would not say why she came, on a man who could not pretend to let go, on everyone standing in his way. No rain could ever clean this one.

S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~


	9. Chapter 9

**9**

When Starsky knocked on Hutch's door at Venice Place – just for the principle of it – the rain had stopped rinsing the town and the curly haired detective did not have his hair so curly and messy as usual.

He entered when he heard a loud "C'mon in" from inside.

"Hi there!" Starsky called when he saw Hutch in the kitchen, preparing his usual morning concoction of vitamins.

"Hi yourself." Hutch replied. "Want some?"

"You're kidding, right?"

"Not really. I've always hoped someday you'll take care of that body of yours."

"I'm in great shape. And as promised, I brought breakfast," he went on putting his precious brown bag on the counter. "Do you mind if I get a coffee? You prepared some... right?"

"Of course. Just for you."

"Thanks. You're a real pal."

Starsky took a mug from the shelf and poured himself a large dose of coffee. He opened the cupboard where he knew he would find sugar and took two lumps which he dropped in his mug.

Hutch was watching him intermittently, making his way around, and smiled. To most of their colleagues, the blonde haired detective and the curly haired one were more than friends, more than brothers. Something so special had been born the first day they met and had grown stronger ever since. Everyone knew that one would cross fire and hell to save the other. Whenever a bad guy was trying to hurt or threaten one of them, the other one would make sure he would regret it for the rest of his miserable existence. To hit one of these two was like signing one's own death warrant or preparing the coffin.

To outsiders, they may have looked like, well, "partners" in the matrimonial sense of the word. A well-informed person would often see the hand of one touch the shoulder or the back of the hand of the other with concern or even tenderness. The thought that these two were sharing more than working hours would necessarily pop up in anybody's mind, anybody who would not know that soul mates are sometimes mistaken for what they are not. The detectives did not care or – as they would say themselves – they did not give a damn.

The place where this special friendship was the most obvious and where no one would be surprised at either one's reaction was the hospital. When Hutch was dying of the plague, when Starsky was shot with a deadly poison, when he almost died at the hands of Gunther's hit men, and on many more occasions, the hospital staff had witnessed a particular determination from each one to stay by the other's side and – even against hospital regulations – they had allowed for the friend to remain by the injured one's side, for hours, even at night.

Hutch smiled and poured himself a large glass of a clear and thick cream colored drink. He looked at his friend and the image of both of them on a photograph, about twenty years from now popped into his mind. _We are like an old couple_, he silently thought to himself. And he suddenly felt so good about the image of that that a long and profound sigh emanated from his chest.

"Are you all right?" Starsky asked.

"Oh yeah! Let's try your croissants. You did bring some, didn't you?"

"Yeah. But I never thought you'd touch them. Here... help yourself, Buddy, I bought enough for ten," he said, opening the bag and presenting it to Hutch.

Hutch grabbed a croissant and took a hungry bite into it.

"Attaboy!" Starsky said, raising his mug to celebrate this special diet infringement.

They both ate in silence for a moment. When they swallowed the last bite of their croissants, their hands both reached the brown bag at the same time.

"After you." Starsky said, too happy to see his blonde partner unable to resist the warm and wonderful freshly baked pastry flavor that was now invading the whole apartment.

"Hey... have you noticed..." mumbled Hutch between two bites, "it stopped raining."

"Yeah, it's a great day today!"

After they were both done with the feast Starsky had brought, they put their mug and glass in the sink, washed their hands and headed for the couch.

Starsky had put the file on the table before joining his partner in the kitchen and now, he sat in front of it and opened the document.

"I went through this again. I still don't get it."

"Get what?" replied Hutch who joined him and sat next to him.

"Why this guy left Miami. I know the Vice guys down there are pretty tough, but anyway, Fuentes would have had more lucrative possibilities to develop a business there than here. Why did he come here? Why Bay City?"

"You ask me? How should I know?" Hutch asked.

"It was just a question to myself. Now... how do we plan to get close and get involved with this guy?"

"We are gonna propose him a deal. According to what Dobey told us and what we read, we shouldn't push it too far. Seems he is not after big records. So we'll introduce ourselves as Mike Burnett and Bob Collins, pretend we wanna find a regular supplier who has not yet been too much involved with the local police and so on and so forth."

"Bob Collins?" Starsky finally reacted. "Where did you get that from?"

"You like it?" Hutch asked.

Starsky closed his eyes a bit and slightly raised the corners of his lips.

"Yeah... Bob Collins..." he repeated for himself. "Bob Collins and Mike Burnett. Hey... Sounds perfect."

"Okay, settled then." Hutch said.

Starsky looked at the open file in front of him and frowned.

"You know, this Ricardo guy..." he started.

"What about him?"

"I don't know. Gut feeling. Don't ask me why. It says he has a violent temper but has never been seen brutalizing anyone in public and those who he harassed never testified."

"You know, Starsk, if we play our cards well there is a good chance we get him when we nail Fuentes."

"I hope you're right. What about the body guards?" He leaned over the papers in search for the names. "Sebastian Garcia and ... Matt Perkins."

Hutch stood up and paced in the living room, as if he were searching for something.

"I've asked Minnie to keep talking to the computer; maybe she can come up with some more details on these two. We will have to watch our backs. Have you seen their pics?" Starsky asked.

"Yeah, I've seen. What about them?" the blonde said. He obviously did not look at ease, mentioning the two who were watching over Fuentes security.

"Well, they look rather big to me, as in "don't-try-to-push-me-or-else-I'll-smash-your-face!" type, if you catch my drift. Remember the guys you once referred to as "_statues collecting pigeons_". That Perkins one seems nasty enough."

"Maybe he is on the..." Hutch started to reply but he did not have the time to finish his sentence.

"Big "D". Oh c'mon Hutch. Not all the body guards are necessarily addicted to it. Last time, you told me about agility and endurance, but it was me who proved that muscles aren't everything."

Hutch did remember that day when they noticed the tail behind their car after having tried to discourage Malinda from harassing Huggy. They had been engaged in a fight with two big tough guys but while Starsky had scandalously managed to easily deal with one of them, he had secured his blonde partner's pride and had let him use almost his last breath and energy in an irregular fight with the other. Which had made him quite angry in the end. Starsky could sometimes play the innocent one and then let his partner deal with somewhat unpleasant situations - implying no danger whatsoever of course - and hide a mischievous smile afterward.

When he turned to Starsky, he saw his partner was reading the file again.

"I have filed a request for money Monday first time." Hutch asked. "How much do you think we can get?"

"I hope enough to sound credible. Otherwise, it's bye-bye mission and ..."

He suddenly stopped, his eyes still focused on the file.

"And what?"

"Don't you think we should listen to the Captain and not go in there without proper back up?" Starsky said, sounding a bit worried. "Fuentes, Ricardo, two body guards ... and who knows who else we don't know of..."

"Why not come in uniforms, while you're at it? Starsk... this is supposed to be an undercover mission, remember? Don't worry, as soon as we got the guy hooked up, we'll call for back-up."

"I was just kiddin..." the vague answer came, for the brunette was still focusing on the file.

"Starsk? Have you listened to me?"

"Yes, Sir!" Starsky announced with a fake ceremonial salutation. But he had been distracted for a moment by the name in the file without a picture._ Teresa Harriman_. There was practically nothing on her. All they knew was that she was singing at _The Rose_ and was probably Fuentes _protégée_.

"Okay... want some more coffee?"

"Yep."

And saying so, they both headed for the kitchen and, while Hutch got himself an extra dose of his morning beverage, Starsky filled his mug with a large dose of coffee and put in two lumps of sugar, under the disgusted look of his silent partner.

S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~


	10. Chapter 10

**10**

Al had told Tessa she could enjoy the day as she wanted, as he had a few things to take care of. She did not ask for more details - she had a pretty clear idea already - and decided to stay home and enjoy a quiet restful day before... before whatever had to occur soon!

She had started with a long hot bath with relaxing essential oils. Then she had wrapped herself in a long comfortable night gown, as she had decided not to dress at all. She could feel the soft material on her skin warmed by the bath. It felt like a caress and the thought of long-fingered hands popped into her head, at the precise moment she reached to pick up her tea mug. She looked at the little bear design on the mug and heard the echo of long forgotten softly spoken words - _my favorite teddy bear_ - although these words had not been meant for a fur toy, but to someone whose souvenir she had never managed to erase - even just a little - from her bleeding memory.

She put the mug back on the counter and breathed deeply a couple of times. She was about to cry out loud, as this was one of the ways she had found to release the pressure in her throat: the other one was to shout for a few seconds and let it all out. But since she was aware of the mikes, she now had to restrain herself and keep it in. Whoever was monitoring her would not understand her odd behavior now, as she had always been the perfect model of apparent serenity at _The Rose._ She had to pretend, again and again.

She had a hard time coping with the pain. For the last three years, she had been lying. To all around. But most of all, to herself.

After _that_ night, she had never been quite the same again. Oh, no one had to complain about her mission, about her behavior, about what she was supposed to do, day after day. She had done everything she had been requested without asking any questions. And she had been efficient, as always. Because she had always been performing to the top of her abilities. Since she was a little kid.

The fact she had to measure up to a bunch of older brothers had certainly been a strong incentive and she had soon learned that she would have to live and fight in a men's world and to prove she was to be taken into account. Her dad was sweet and gentle with her when they were both alone - which did not occur that often - but he sometimes allowed himself to show a little tenderness to his little Tessa, gently caressing her hair when hugging her goodnight, smiling when she had carried out a special task with brio. Of course, he would first make sure no one was watching him. His sons would not mock him nor her, for that matter, because they all displayed a genuine respect for their father. It was more their father who was refraining from showing gestures of what he considered softness in public.

Soon after she was born, the last of five kids, her mother had been killed in a car crash and her father had done the best he could - and even more than that - to raise his four boys and his little girl by himself. He had done a great job. They all had followed the path they had chosen and discussed with their father. None of the children had been pushed in one particular direction. Each one of them had been free to decide upon his or her own destiny. When Tessa had told her father what she wanted to do with her life, he had first been a bit worried. The way he had looked at her that day had hurt him more than he would have admitted. Tessa was very much the spitting image of her mother and when she would look at him with that little smile, he was melting inside, but of course, not showing anything on the outside. He had blessed her choice, told her to be careful and assured her he would be there anytime she would need him.

And she had moved. Not too far away from her family but far enough to start to feel a sense of real independence, from the males of her family, from the protection they would surely offer, from the safety of a city she knew like the back of her hand. She wanted more. She had always searched for more. More... more... more.

Until she met _him_. Lightning struck and she felt trapped. Obviously it had been reciprocal and they had started to live together very soon after their first encounter. Neither of them had really fully understood what had happened but, there they were, madly in love with each other. What did people call this? Huh, perhaps _Love at First Sight_. Yeah, she knew, it could be, she had experienced it. She had felt like she was finally complete, being part of something bigger than herself, something so special and strong that she thought nothing in the whole world would ever be able to break it. Each passing day had brought more love and trust between both of them. They were planning ahead. They started to buy things for the apartment they were now sharing. And she bought him a mug with a teddy bear leaning on a wall and saying "_Gee, I'm good_!" She was calling him _My Favorite Teddy Bear_. He was calling her _Busy Bee_. They were not afraid of anything. Because they both felt nothing would ever stand between them and ... well, whatever cloud or darkness which kept falling onto others around them.

How wrong she was. Because _that_ night, that very special and terrible night, she had learned. The hard way. The most awful way. She had been hurt, but the worst was, he had been killed in front of her and there had been nothing she could have done, despite what she had been trained to do. Fate had taken the face of a shadow, lurking in the dark and waiting to strike. The pain had been sharp. Her body had healed, slowly, eventually. But her soul remained shattered and she had been trying for the last three years to pick up the pieces.

She had barely heard the knock on the door. She suddenly noticed she had ended up sitting on the floor, leaning against the couch, holding a cushion against her heart, and gently rocking back and forth, as she had done at the hospital early after they had saved her from total madness. She emerged from her memories and shook her head to clear the dark feeling which had invaded her mind for a moment. She slowly stood up, checked and adjusted her night gown, put the cushion back on the couch and headed to the door.

She heard the gentle knock again. She recognized Alejandro's touch. Only he would knock so elegantly three times. But just in case, she decided to make sure it was him, behind the door, and not Ricardo, trying to fool her.

"Yeah. Who is it?" she asked, standing very close behind the door, tightly holding her night gown, wrapped around her body.

"It's me, Babe."

It was Alejandro, all right. She unchained and unlocked the door and slowly opened it. Alejandro was looking at her with that sweet gentle smile of his. He was standing with his hands hidden behind his back.

"Good evening, Al. I... I thought..." She was about to ask him why he was there, then she quickly kept her mouth shut, for he was paying for the place she was living in.

_But I don't belong to him, he always said I was free. So why do I feel like I'm guilty of something? Shit, get a grip, Tess. This is just a make-belief._

She opened the door in full. He entered and revealed what he was holding in his hands. A bunch of champagne roses.

"These are for you, Babe." he said and kissed her on the cheek.

"What... what's the occasion?"

"Do I need an occasion? Let's say you seemed a bit sad and I bought your favorites."

He headed to the bar and served himself a large glass of bourbon. He turned to Tessa.

"Shall I prepare you a cocktail?"

"Huh... no, thank you, I just had some tea."

He nodded and sat on the couch. Tessa was still standing in the middle of the apartment, holding the roses in her hands. She suddenly had the strong impulse to throw them on the floor and trample on them. She wanted to scream her heart out and run away from this place as fast as she could. Almost two months … and she felt she could not take any more of this. She made up her mind to go and talk to the one who maybe could get her out of this for good. But right now, she had to hold on, she had to master her feelings of anger and disgust, most of which were directed to herself.

Instead, she put the most believable smile on her face and said in her usual melodious voice:

"I'm gonna put them in a vase."

And she headed to the kitchen.

Alejandro had never been the talkative one with her, with anyone in fact. He was comfortably relaxing on the couch, methodically sipping his bourbon and looking at the young brunette who was taking care of the flowers he just offered.

"Tessa?" he called her very softly.

"Yes?"

"Are you happy?"

Tessa shivered for a brief moment but he did not notice it.

"Yes... why do you ask, Al?"

"I've been watching you for the last few days. Sometimes you seem... lost... or sad. What's the matter, Babe?"

"Nothing, I assure you. It's just..."

_Quick, think of something_! She thought while arranging the flowers in the vase. She put the vase on the bar.

"It's just that...I've been thinking a lot about my Mom lately."

Alejandro did not reply. Tessa felt this could be the perfect opportunity to let go some of the tension she had been feeling during all these weeks. She had briefly spoken of her to Al when they first met. It turned out that her reality matched the role she had buried herself into.

"I'm gonna be fine, don't worry. I... I miss her... but I'm okay." she went on, still standing in front of the bar, with her back turned to Alejandro.

The tall man stood up from the couch, put his glass on the table and approached her. He tenderly put his arms around her, holding her back against his chest. His cheek rested on her hair. He could smell the remaining fragrance of what she had used in her bath, a delicate smell of orchid.

He held her for a bit longer and let go of his embrace. He stepped back just a couple of steps. He had learned to respect her will to cope with many things and to show a strong attitude.

"I wish there was something I could do. But I know the pain takes time to get over. Well, we actually never get over the loved ones who are gone, but... you know what I mean."

Tessa turned and looked at him for an instant then turned her eyes away from him and stared at the lamp, next to the couch. She remembered the microphones.

"Thank you, Al. I appreciate. It must have been hard for you too. And for Rico, I guess."

_Okay, let's try to launch a few hooks – I'm one of them, yeah, even feel like a hooker - see what I catch_.

"Yeah." Alejandro sighed. "He has always tried to be strong and tough. But you know, I raised him as my own son and..."

_Here we come, listen very carefully, Rico, I guess what's coming next is for you_, she thought.

"And?..." she softly said, encouraging to go on.

"I don't think he's up to it. I mean, he developed a violent temper, he always seems ready to burst and ... I think he is about to engage in some irreversible decision."

"What do you mean?" she asked, sounding genuinely concerned.

"Tessa, after all these years dealing with... well, you know what... I felt I paid too high a price in exchange for a comfortable life. First, my mom, my father, my sister, and then..."

He stopped talking, swallowed hard a couple of times. Tessa suddenly saw him clench his teeth and close his eyes. _If he were any other person and not who he is, I'd almost feel sorry for the guy. Go ahead, man, talk to me, I'm not the only one listening_!

"What are you gonna do?" she asked.

"About what?"

"About... the business? About Rico?"

Alejandro heaved a sigh and went on.

"I think I'm gonna do one more deal and leave this place. Rico can take care of himself."

"Oh? And... where do you wanna go?"

"I don't know yet. I just want to leave all this behind."

"But you are some big guy around here."

"I don't care anymore."

_Sounds so weird. I've never heard of a drug dealer, who is well established in the business for so long, deciding to quit. Don't tell me I stumbled on the only bad guy in the world who could actually feel guilty about his "job"? Rico must be having a hell of a time, hearing this through the mikes._

Tessa did not reply, as she did not know what to say next. The tall man in front of her seemed to have shrunk just a little. He headed for the bar, left his glass on the counter and turned to Tessa. He was about to say something more, yet the words seemed to remain stuck in the back of his throat. Finally he found the courage to say what he had come to say.

"Tessa...if I leave all this behind... I... huh... I'd like you to come with me."

Tessa tried not to show her surprise and disgust at the same time. Al did not notice her discomfort and added.

"I'd be honored if you'd accept. And I promise, nothing bad will ever happen to you. I'll protect you. I swear."

"Al..." the young woman started, but she could not go on. She was about to burst into tears, but not of joy or sadness; they were tears of rage. Fuentes mistook her attitude for a hesitation or even expectation. He came to her, gently caressed the young brunette's hair and put a single kiss on her forehead. Then, without another word, he left the apartment.

Tessa quickly walked to the bathroom, splashed water on her face. She raised her eyes and looked at her reflection. She closed her eyes and opened them again. In an uncontrollable reaction of anger, she grabbed the soap and violently smashed it on the mirror, as if to erase the image of her face.

When she finally stopped hitting the smooth surface, she let her tears freely fall down her cheeks.

_I can't take this any more! Shit, even if I committed to this freely, I'm gonna get out of here. I don't care. They have all they need now. I gotta split... or I feel I could kill him myself._

She would have felt better if only she could have spoken these words aloud, but she somehow kept her self control intact and remembered at all times where she was and why she was there.

She went back to the living room and approached the writing desk. She extended her hand and reached to feel what she had hidden there. For a brief moment, she was tempted to take it, but she withdrew her hand and instead, let herself fall on the couch. With her head in the opposite direction, she was at the right place to stare at the lamp.

_One day for sure... one day soon..._

She realized she had uttered the very last words aloud, shivered at the idea Rico or one of his men had been listening, but thought there was nothing to worry about. These words were not putting her in any more danger than she already was.

Completely exhausted by the recent tension she had felt, she fell asleep on the couch.

Soon after her breathing was regular and shallow, the man who had been listening to the conversation between her and Al took the headphones off his head. He frowned to himself. His lips turned in a suspicious half smile.

_One day soon... and even sooner than you expect, my dear Tessa..._

He left the apartment located in a building in front of Tessa's place and walked into the chilly night, his hands deeply stuck in the pockets of his dark overcoat.

S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~


	11. Chapter 11

**11**

They parked the blue Lincoln close enough to _The Rose_ so that they would not have to walk too much in case it rained when they came out. The brunette cut the ignition and got out of the car first. He looked at the vehicle they had managed to borrow for the duration of this assignment, and even Hutch had displayed obvious signs of appreciation while sitting in the passenger's seat. The blonde stepped out of the car, closed the door and looked around him, trying to look important and about to meet some essential associate with a view to signing some huge contract. The brunette looked much more relaxed and was actually swinging his body a bit, like he was rehearsing some dance movement.

"Starsk, cut it out!"

"Hey... relax, Bronco... just stretching a little... before entering the lion's den."

They had requested a last-minute briefing with their captain, informing him of the way they intended to nail Fuentes and his gang, of the names they were gonna use and of the money they were gonna need. Dobey had assured his men that he would intervene so that, for once, whatever the amount involved, they would get it, because this Fuentes seemed like a big guy who would do more damage than any other drug lord who ever came to town if he decided to expand his territory. The Lincoln had been assigned to the detectives - with the specific recommendation that it be returned in the same state they had taken custody of it. Starsky had grinned when he heard the last piece of advice.

They had also called Huggy to let him know under which names they would introduce themselves to Fuentes. _The Rose_ boss would necessarily have his men ask around for some info about these two new guys who came into town and wanted to do business with him.

They thought all details had been prepared, discussed, planned. Hutch stretched his back one last time and headed for the night club, followed by his partner.

It was 9 p.m. when they entered Fuentes establishment, they were first struck by the rather elegant design of the place. There were just enough tables and chairs to welcome a sufficient audience and not feel squeezed. The piano on stage had been granted a large area and was surrounded by long purple curtains that were undulating on the floor all around the back of the stage. Eight of the fifteen tables were occupied, less than two dozens of customers were enjoying a quiet evening, sipping their cocktails or red wine, waiting for the main attraction of the evening to begin.

Starsky immediately spotted one of the body guards heading to them. He discreetly nodded at Hutch who nodded back. The silent conversation between the detectives had been so covert that only the ones who knew them very well would have noticed.

"Good evening, gentlemen." said the tall man who was currently standing in their way and blocking the view to the interior of the club.

"Evening." Starsky started in a distinguished tone. "We've been recommended this... club and we'd love to enjoy a few refreshments, possibly at the best table." he added, slowly sliding a folded green bill from his interior pocket.

"Are you acquaintances of the proprietor?" the guard went on, ignoring the bill.

Hutch intervened. "Not yet. But I'm sure he'd love to see and talk with us. We would appreciate if you'd let him know that we would like to be introduced to Mr Fuentes."

The tall man did not blink nor move, hearing the men knew his boss's name.

"And your names are…?"

Starsky spoke before his partner could answer.

"Bob Collins and Mike Burnett," he said while absent-mindedly looking around at the customers and stage and avoiding the man's look in front of him, which gave him some sort of superior attitude.

"Collins and Burnett." The man repeated.

"Yes. You got it right. Now could you please go to your boss and tell him we'd like to share a good bottle of his best wine, as I'm sure he must hold treasures. And tell him he's our guest... Possibly tonight." Starsky added, as the man was not showing any intention to move an inch. "He'll be sorry if you don't let us in and he finds out later on that he missed one very interesting... opportunity, only because you've been too... selective on the customers. Now, turn around, head for Mr Fuentes and announce us... please."

Starsky's voice was now almost sugary, but he thought the guy in front of him would buy it and not try to attract his boss's fury only because he acted too zealously.

The body guard stepped aside and waved to Collins and Burnett to follow him. He chose a table far enough from the door and somewhat isolated. Starsky and Hutch sat in front of each other, so that the two of them could share a global view of the whole place.

"Well... so far, so good." whispered the brunette.

"Yes. Nice place indeed."

"So relax. We're in." Starsky replied, trying to sound reassuring.

A waitress, all dressed in an elegant yet simple black dress came to take their order and went back to the main counter. There was some kind of jazzy melody floating in the air. Starsky was gently tapping with the tips of his fingers on the table while Hutch was sitting still and looking around inconspicuously. The girl came back with a bottle of Saint-Emilion, filled their glasses and looked at the brunette detective for a moment. Starsky did not react and took a sip from his glass. She went away trying to contain her disappointment and attended another table.

"Starsk..." suddenly mumbled Hutch in an almost inaudible voice.

Starsky understood and very slowly paid more attention to the guy who was heading to their table. He carefully studied the man dressed in a dark grey suit and a black tie. Starsky noted the guy was way shorter than he was but, considering his stature, he also thought he surely would be tough to fight with, as his outfit let show a strong musculature and he was moving with a determined souplesse.

When he reached the table where the detectives were sitting, he stood there for a few seconds and stared at both of them, as if assessing the newcomers.

"Matt has just informed me that you are new in the neighborhood," he spoke quite low, "and that you wish to meet the proprietor. May I ask you what brings you here and what is the purpose of your visit?"

"Good evening. Are you the one in charge?" Hutch asked very calmly, identifying the short man as Ricardo Mendoza. He decided to play it safe.

"I'm Ricardo Mendoza. What can I do for you?"

"Actually we'd like Mr Fuentes to join us, only for a moment. We know he is a very busy man. It won't take long." Hutch answered, trying to taint his voice with a confident nuance which would make it clear to Ricardo they knew exactly where they were and why.

"Mr Fuentes is a very busy man, indeed. Perhaps I could fill him in with the purpose of your visit and he will contact you... that is... if he thinks he is interested."

Ricardo's voice now sounded a bit sarcastic. But Hutch did not underline the detail and went on.

"We are about to propose Mr Fuentes... let's say... some new line of business he could be interested in and he is the man we wish to talk to, face to face. He has been recommended by a friend of ours from Miami." Hutch thought that this last detail would collar the small man in front of them. "But if you think he'd rather lose that opportunity, don't worry. We'll tell our friend that you made it clear he was not ready for this."

Saying so, in an extremely slow motion, Hutch stood up, signaling his partner he wanted to put an end to the conversation.

"Let's not be hasty here." Ricardo immediately reacted. "I did not say Mr Fuentes would not be interested. I just wanted to know more about what you wanna talk to him about. Please, gentlemen, I'll notify Mr Fuentes you are here to see him."

Though he could not admit it openly, Rico felt that it was not in his best interest - not yet anyway - to take the risk of a failed transaction offered to his uncle. He decided that, for the moment, he would act as the dedicated nephew his uncle thought he was.

"Mr Fuentes is on the phone right now. I will let him know that you wish to talk to him, Mr Burnett," he calmly said, looking Hutch in the eye.

"I'm Collins. He is Burnett" Hutch replied, waving at his _associate_ at the end of his sentence.

"Right. Mr Collins, Mr Burnett. Mr Fuentes won't be long."

And, without another word, Ricardo Mendoza turned back and headed to the counter. He opened a door marked _private_ and quickly shut it behind him.

Hutch looked at his partner, waiting for a first reaction, but the brunette refrained from speaking about this first contact, as he saw that another big guy was standing not too far from them and could have heard.

"So, partner, I sure hope that Mr Fuentes will agree to talk to us and accept our proposal," he said loud enough so that the guy he identified as most probably being Sebastian could hear.

Hutch bought it and went on with their pretend conversation.

"Yeah. Listen, Mike, what if he is not interested?" he asked, giving his voice about the same volume to be heard by the guy standing close to the door behind which Rico had disappeared.

"We'll have to bring our little suitcase elsewhere. But I'll tell you frankly, I'd be surprised that Fuentes would refuse such a bargain."

They went on, talking in a casual tone, as if no one was listening, yet choosing their words very carefully, so that Seb could report to his boss later in case Rico did not pass the message to his uncle.

They were drinking their second glass of wine when a tall guy emerged from the "private" door and calmly walked toward their table.

S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~


	12. Chapter 12

**12**

Hutch was the first one to stand up and extend a hand as he wanted to properly pretend to pay his respects to the newcomer. Starsky hesitated for a couple of seconds, then stood up too. The big man extended a hand and gave a strong handshake to each one. He then addressed his visitors a brief but courteous smile.

"Good evening, gentlemen. I'm told that you have been sent by mutual friends. I'm glad to welcome you here. Rico had informed me that you may have a business proposal to offer."

He sat down and the detectives noticed that Sebastian was getting closer to his boss, his hands behind his back, which gave him an even more imposing look. He was wearing an ample vest and, from where he was standing, Hutch could see the bulge made by the holster and the gun he was wearing. Yet he immediately turned his full attention to Fuentes again.

"Mr Fuentes," the blond started in a subdued tone, "first of all, I'd like to thank you for seeing us here and now. Let me introduce myself, my name is Bob Collins and this is my partner, Mike Burnett. We have recently moved into the area and we've been told that you are... well you may provide us with a certain... item, for which we are ready to compensate in the most... interesting way."

Fuentes frowned and tried to scan the blond man sitting in front of him. He usually was good at this kind of silent manoeuver, and very often succeeded in guessing a possible treachery. This time, he just felt the man who had just spoken was believable. He turned his attention to the brunet at the other side of the table and tried to find some reason why he should not believe this one either. Starsky frowned too and could not help but stare back at Fuentes with his impenetrable indigo eyes, as if he were playing the same game. After at least ten seconds, both men granted each other a hint of a smile.

In his heart of hearts, Starsky felt that they were in business. Fuentes had bought it! For whatever reason. He had first felt their pretend scenario was not as good as it should have been, especially after Rico had tried to barricade the access to his uncle.

"All right." Fuentes said. "Let's see what you have to offer, and I will tell you if I'm interested in your... business proposal."

Starsky gave a quick glance at his partner.

"With your permission, I'd like to cut to the chase and get to the point. We need to find a regular source that could provide to us every month," the brunet started to explain. His voice was very calm, somewhat winning. "We'd like to begin with, let's say, 3 to 5 kilos, as a start."

Fuentes slightly raised his chin, which gave him the superior attitude of someone about to hammer a verdict in court.

"And how much... compensation do you carry?" he asked.

"We usually don't carry any... compensation before we have agreed on the deal. Let's say we could offer you about 9 Grand, if it's pure enough, in compensation for your... diligent kindness." Hutch replied, looking at his partner and exchanging a silent yet obvious little smile which was meant for their host and which meant _We are working together and what one of us thinks or says, the other one concurs_.

Fuentes sighed, closed his eyes for a fraction of a second, then opened them again and looked at the empty stage behind Hutch. It seemed there was so much going on in his head and the detectives could feel that the big man in front of them was about to refuse the proposal.

Fuentes waved at the waitress and ordered another bottle of wine. When she moved away to fetch the order, Fuentes turned his attention back again to Hutch, then to Starsky.

"Mr Collins... Mr Burnett... I'd be glad to do some business with you... for now..."

"For now?" Hutch replied.

"Who knows what the future holds for us... let's take the present for what it is... and right now, I'd like you to remain silent and turn around. I think you will enjoy what's next."

Hutch twisted his body on his chair to face the stage; Starsky was already facing it and both detectives waited a short instant, until all lights went off and the first notes of a blues melody started to emerge from the piano. From where they were sitting, they could only guess the black man sitting behind the grand piano.

A quick glance at Fuentes' face confirmed to Starsky, slightly behind him, now facing the stage, that something special was about to happen.

And it did happen. After a few notes, a deep and enchanting female voice captured everyone's attention in the room.

Starsky opened his mouth in delight while Hutch frowned, remembering other times when he had felt a similar thrill while listening to a special woman singing on stage. He remembered himself writing on a napkin... getting deep into what turned into drama and could have killed him... _1927 Kansas City_... Yeah, in another lifetime...

As the song gained in power and captured the audience, Starsky started to discern the shape of a woman standing next to the grand piano. Still discreetly keeping an eye around their table, he seemed to be captured by the figure that offered a true moment of magic to the public. Hutch was sitting in his line of sight and he saw that his partner was equally seduced by the performance. In fact, all eyes were turned to the stage.

After the first song, there was an enthusiastic burst of applause and the light went off again around the piano. But as he now got used to the half-light, Starsky noticed that the woman turned her back to the public. From where he was sitting, he could guess her taking a glass from the piano top and, before she drank, her hand quickly raising to her mouth. She drank from the glass and in strict secrecy seemed to swallow something else than just water.

He took his own glass, and as Fuentes was staring at him, he felt he really had to distract the man from his recent scrutiny.

"She is absolutely breathtaking!" he said. "Where did you find this pearl?"

"Tessa is indeed the pearl in the Rose, if I may say so." Fuentes replied, meanwhile he turned his eyes back to the stage and a content smile slipped out of his lips.

"Tessa? Nice name... Nice voice. More than nice." The brunet whispered for himself.

Fuentes did not reply. He was waiting for the next song to begin. He seemed lost in contemplation, in thoughts that nothing would wake him from.

Hutch turned to grant his partner a smile of appreciation on the performance they had just witnessed.

The three men around the table silenced again when the pianist touched the keys and started to play the first notes of the next song, a more recent melody of which Bernie had slightly adapted to key so it would be more comfortable for Tessa to sing.

_Some say love it is a river..._

Starsky could not get his eyes off her while the words seemed to cut through her flesh, yet no blood was to be seen anywhere on her rigid body standing next to the piano.

_That drowns the tender reed..._

He was holding his glass mid-way to his lips but did not drink.

_Some say love it is a razor..._

Hutch turned a moment to grab his own glass and gave his partner an imperceptible sign to warn him about his present reaction.

_That leaves your soul to bleed._

Fuentes did not notice the captivation of the brunet, yet Rico was not missing any of it. He stood there, his look wandering from that Burnett guy to Tessa and back again. He clenched his fists, his eyes turned cold and his breathing slightly accelerated.

At the end of the performance, Fuentes politely made his visitors understand the meeting was over for now. He rescheduled another rendez-vous, in two days. Burnett and Collins stood up. Tessa had gone backstage so Starsky could not see her anymore. He followed his blond partner and left _The Rose_.

S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~

Fuentes found Tessa in his private office. She seemed again more nervous than usual. But he decided not to ask her any more questions for tonight.

Sebastian joined them and asked whether he should heat the engine.

"In a moment, Sebastian. I'd like to make a phone call to check on these Burnett and Collins first. They seem okay but I'd like to check about their credentials. Have you heard about them before, Seb?"

"No Sir. But they seem all right."

"Yes..." Fuentes answered, absent-minded. "Huh, Seb, I think we will leave The Rose shortly after I've made my phone call. Tell Rico to get ready and then you can wait for us in the car."

"Yes, Mr Fuentes."

Sebastian made a discreet exit and silently closed the door.

S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~

Soon after Fuentes had headed for his office and the two new guys had left the nightclub, Matt walked to Rico, standing close to the "private" door and whispered something in his ear.

Rico frowned and quickly turned his head to face Matt to get a confirmation of what he just heard.

"Are you sure?"

"No quite yet. But I'll find out."

"If you're right, this means the deal they agreed on will be the only one they'll ever make."

Saying so, he smiled for himself. Destiny may have brought him the opportunity he needed sooner than anticipated, after all.

S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~


	13. Chapter 13

**13**

Alejandro was concentrating on the road, looking through the window, while Sebastian was driving in silence in front of him. Tessa was sitting next to Alejandro. She was staring through her own window, counting the light poles, like when she was a kid and she was traveling with her father on long distances. But she was losing track every fifteen poles or so and started all over again. She felt this was really a stupid thing to do, but she was unable to concentrate on anything else than the road and the idea she would spend the night alone at her place. Actually all she wanted was to take a warm bath and forget about the day.

The detail that kept rolling in her head was the faces of the two new guys Alejandro had met earlier that evening. She noticed that the brunet had been staring at her in a persistent way. _Perhaps he liked the way I sung or maybe … oh forget it, Tess, you're imagining things again. Okay, he looked rather cute but you know what these guys are... so don't even think you might... oh man, here I go again, talking to myself... I really gotta stop this... get some rest... and hope this will end soon. No more pretending..._

Comfortably installed on the passenger's seat, Ricardo was thinking of Tessa most of the time. There was that same little smile on his face, the one he showed when Matt had whispered something at The Rose, before they said their goodbyes to Burnett and Collins, that nasty smile which he had when he was thinking of a wicked plan. But, as he was sitting in front, no one could see his ironic look.

When they parked in front of Tessa's place, Alejandro told Seb to wait in the car, stepped out and walked around the car to open the door for Tessa. She stepped out without looking at him. She was trying to show a casual attitude, calm and relaxed, but Al took her by the hand and accompanied her to the door. Ricardo was following a few steps behind.

When the three of them entered into the young girl's apartment, Ricardo had not uttered a word yet. He acted as if he was waiting for his uncle to order him to leave. But as a matter of fact, Al was really acting as if his nephew was not there.

Tessa had already taken off her coat and headed to the bar to prepare Al's usual drink.

"Do you want something, Rico?" she asked.

"No, thanks, Tessie." Rico replied, and smiled again when he saw the young woman's reaction. He knew she did not fancy that name. She had told him a couple of times before but he kept calling her that, as if he wanted to appropriate a part of her by giving her a name no one else used.

Ricardo liked to play with people's nerves, like a cat with a condemned mouse. Over and over again. Until they lost their temper and made a mistake. He was playing with her. For now, she was his mouse to play with. It had started the very first day he had met her.

He sat on the couch and looked at her and Al who took the drink Tessa gave him. After sipping a few gulps, he put the glass on the counter and turned to Rico.

"Could you go down and tell Sebastian I'll be back in a minute?"

As Rico did not move, Al's voice raised in volume and authority.

"Now, Rico!"

Ricardo raised an eyebrow, discreetly sighed and headed for the door. Before leaving the apartment, he turned to Tessa.

"Great performance tonight, Tessie. Really. Good night."

Tessa shivered. She knew this kind of compliment only meant one thing and she hated him a bit more for speaking like that in front of Alejandro. She hated everything about him: his attitude, the way he looked at her, the words he used, the tone he spoke in to his uncle sometimes. She felt something dangerous was about to emanate from him and – even though she had an idea about what it was – she did not know when it would come out nor how hard. But she knew.

When the door closed on Rico's back, Al turned to Tessa and reached for his inner jacket pocket. He was holding a small box in his hand.

_Oh Gosh, no, please... don't you dare_! She thought. _I should have quit this a long time ago. Look at me, I must be completely crazy._

Alejandro opened the little black box in front of her eyes. There was a thin and delicate golden bracelet shining inside.

"Happy Birthday, Tessa. See... I did not forget."

The young girl gasped and stood motionless. As she was standing there, staring at the jewel, he took the bracelet and adjusted it on her wrist.

"Don't pay attention to Rico, he is impetuous and even invasive. Don't you worry about him."

"Huh... I... thank you... But..." she finally uttered, unable to find anything else to say, except in her head _Get the hell outa here and leave me in peace!_

"I gotta go now. You sure you're all right? You seem a bit... worried."

"Yeah... I'm fine...I'm gonna be fine, Al. Thank you. You... you gotta go. You got new business to attend, right?"

She was trying to engage the conversation onto the men he had just met.

"Yeah. You know what, I feel like these two could be my last deal. I'm sure they want to sign for more, but Rico will deal with them after I initiate our business. Then I thought maybe we could... leave... just you and me."

Tessa forced a weak smile and turned to the bar so he could not see the tension she was trying to fight off, the frowning of her tired eyes, the muscles in her jaws tensed, her fists ready to hit.

The big man approached her from behind and put a soft kiss on her neck, which made her shiver even more, from surprise as well as disgust.

"Take care," the tender voice of Alejandro whispered in her ear. "I'll send Sebastian to pick you up tomorrow. OK?"

"OK." She whispered back, which Al wrongfully took for an anticipation reaction.

Then he left and gently closed the door behind him, leaving Tessa crying silent tears in the middle of the apartment. Out of rage, she took off the bracelet and threw it in the ice cube box.

S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~

Sebastian was patiently waiting behind the wheel when he saw Rico exiting the building and walking toward the car. He let out a heavy sigh before Ricardo reached the passenger door and opened it wide. Yet, he did not climb into the vehicle immediately. He was watching the building, and more precisely the windows of Tessa's apartment.

Sebastian put both hands on the wheel and stared in front of him. He could not admit it to anyone, but he never liked Ricardo Mendoza very much. There was something he'd always found repulsive about the short man, though he could not explain why. Some gut feeling? It all started when he met Alejandro and became his right arm. The young Ricardo had been acting like Sebastian was nothing more than a servant, not the trusted body guard his Uncle relied upon all the time. There was some connection between the two older men which Rico never fully understood, even less acknowledged. He remembered when Al's nephew was just a little boy, he used to abide by every single wish Rico had, simply answering "Yes, Mister Rico" or "As you wish, Mister Rico". But soon, Al Fuentes had notified the body guard to treat his nephew in a more strict and not as obsequious manner.

"_But he is your nephew, Mr Fuentes." Sebastian had retorted._

"_I don't care, Sebastian. He's gotta learn he is no prince here; heir maybe, but no special precious movie star, I don't want him to turn into a spoiled brat."_

Sebastian remembered the exact words._ Spoiled brat._ Rico certainly did not look like one right now, more like a bird of prey about to swoop down on a little lemming. For the last couple of months, he was paying more attention to Rico's attitudes, just in case. Gut feeling, again.

Because Sebastian did care. His loyalty was to Mr Fuentes. His only regret was that his boss seemed to prepare for some kind of retirement and Sebastian did not want to be allocated to Ricardo's protection afterwards.

Rico finally sat on the front seat, next to an uncomfortable yet secretive Sebastian.

"How are you, Seb?" Rico asked in a falsely amicable tone.

"Very well, Mister Ricardo, thank you."

He could have sworn to have felt his passenger shiver if only for a second when he answered. He had always called him that, since Rico was a little boy, which was for him a form of respect. Yet, Rico never understood the nuance and took this way of addressing him as an insult. The short man sitting next to Sebastian did not react.

"Good." Rico simply uttered and went on observing the building.

They waited for a few more minutes. Alejandro appeared in the front door, seemed to search for something in his pocket, looked at the car parked in front of the building, down the stairs. He raised his look at the dark sky, as if he were expecting a shooting star, heaved a profound sigh and slowly headed for the car.

S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~

As soon as she felt a bit more relaxed, after she had boiled with rage for more minutes than she could count, she headed to the bathroom, took off her clothes and, without going to the trouble of putting them in the laundry basket, she slid her tensed body under the shower and set the water to 'cold'.

When the biting cold sensation became intolerable, she stepped out and quickly slipped into the bath gown and let her body slowly slide onto the floor. She raised her legs against her chest, put her arms around them and rested her head on her knees.

_Tomorrow, I will go and talk to HIM. There is enough I can give him for me to get out of this trap._

_Tomorrow... Alejandro won't need to see me before lunch time. I can go and pretend I'm gonna do some shopping. They never keep a close watch on me... not yet... I need to take advantage of this._

_Tomorrow..._

She put on an oversized white cotton sweater and laid down on her bed, her eyes wide open, staring at the ceiling.

After she had made up her mind about the course of action of the next day, she felt too nervous to sleep. All she could think of was the day after... and the decision she would have to make, for her own safety.

S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~


	14. Chapter 14

**14**

"Anybody home?"

The voice was loud and clear and when he entered the apartment, a strong smell of coffee entered with him.

"You're up early." Hutch said, a bit surprised, while he was putting on a cream-colored shirt.

"Yep. We need to fill in the Captain with the latest news and then we gotta see this Fuentes to finalize the details of our deal. Hey, have you seen the skies?"

"Huh? What skies?" Hutch obviously had awakened only moments ago.

"You know, what's above our heads when we walk outside; and sometimes, there are a couple of clouds floating across. Wake up, you big lummox!"

"Ah!" Hutch looked askance at his partner. "What about the skies?"

"They're clear! It's not raining any more today!"

Hutch went into the kitchen and started to prepare his morning special diet mélange.

"I hadn't noticed."

"I feel great! Finally it's over. I hate the rain."

"I know."

"Too much for this season, don't you think? We've had enough."

"Sure."

"Are you gonna be _that_ talkative for the whole day?"

"Perhaps."

"Great!"

"Huh huh."

"Stop it!"

"What?"

"Stop doing this!"

"What?" Hutch replied while he was mixing various ingredients in the blender.

"This! You're getting on my nerves. Stop this little game, will ya?"

"OK."

"There you go again!"

"No."

"See?"

"Starsk?"

"What?"

"Now it's your turn! Gotcha!"

Starsky twisted his lips in a mocking expression.

"You want some?" the blond asked extending a full glass to Starsky.

The brunet gave the mixture a suspicious look.

"You're kidding?"

"Not really. It'll be good for you, full of vitamins."

"It's not that I don't trust you, but..."

"But... you already had breakfast, am I right?" Hutch said with a smile, finishing his partner's sentence.

"Yeah."

"Don't tell me. I don't wanna know!"

"Too bad, knowledge is to be shared."

"Maybe, but not THAT kind of knowledge."

"Too bad, like I said. I'll stick to my own juice, if you don't mind."

Both drank their respective drinks. When they were done, Starsky threw his plastic cup in the bin while Hutch rinsed his glass and the blender in the sink.

He took his jacket from the coat-peg.

"Let's go."

They both headed for the Torino, parked right in front of Venice Place.

Traffic was unusually flowing freely, as if many city souls had decided to take a day off and go to the beach to celebrate the end of the rain.

It took them a lot less time than usual to reach Metro.

When they entered the squad room, they felt a different ambience, like everyone had been affected by the bit of blue they had seen in the sky. Starsky got rid of his jacket and headed straight for the coffee pot.

Hutch delicately put his own jacket on the back of his chair and sat in front of his perfectly clean desk.

He had no time to take a file, Starsky hardly had time to pour himself a cup of coffee when Starsky's phone rang. The brunet turned to pick it up but Hutch had already reached for it.

"You gotta be quicker than that," he whispered to his partner, then loudly "Yes Captain?" he said, as he had noticed the call was coming from their superior's office.

Starsky gave his partner a nasty look and tried to sip his coffee, but it was too hot.

"Right away." He hung up. "Captain wants to see us, now!"

They both headed for Dobey's office, opened the door. They stopped at the entrance. There was someone sitting with their back to the door. Dobey motioned to them to come in.

What Starsky first saw was a pair of legs, obviously belonging to a woman. He walked a little farther into the room and then abruptly stopped when he saw the person sitting in front of Dobey.

S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~

He stared at her and then at his partner who was standing slightly in the background and could not see the face of the visitor yet.

"What is SHE doing in here?" Starsky exclaimed.

Seeing his partner about to burst, Hutch came closer to have a look at the visitor and recognized the woman who was sitting stiff in the chair facing their captain.

"Calm down, I'll explain everything," Dobey said in a strong voice which signified to his detectives they'd better wait and listen to what he had to say before getting worked up.

"Let me present you Detective Sergeant second class Teresa Harriman, from SDPD Crime Prevention department."

He let his detectives swallow the news.

"Starsky, close your mouth, or else I'm gonna sit in a draught!"

"But Captain, she was... she is..."

"She is helping us to catch Fuentes! Ms Harriman, this is Detective David Starsky," he said pointing at the brunet. Hutch had approached the desk so she could see him too. "And this is Detective Ken Hutchinson. You have already met them as..."

"Burnett and Collins," she whispered in an angry tone. "Yes, I know them, Captain."

Her voice was glacial and the way she looked at both detectives meant she was as unhappy about this encounter as they obviously were.

"I've heard about them, when Fuentes was trying to ascertain whether these," she pointed a finger at Starsky with a contemptuous look in her eyes, "were genuine enough."

"And did he?" Starsky asked with the same kind of look.

"I think he did. I heard him say that this would make a nice finale to his career here."

Starsky looked at his partner.

"That would confirm what Huggy told us."

"Huggy?" Teresa asked, raising an eyebrow. "Another undercover agent, perhaps?"

"No, Huggy is... whatever!" Starsky answered brutally. "Captain, why weren't we notified there was an undercover agent on site?"

"I could ask you the same question?" Tessa grinned.

"I could not tell you." Dobey calmly responded to his men. "This was a special request from SDPD. Sergeant Harriman volunteered to infiltrate Fuentes' network as closely as she could. We had confirmation he had a liking for girls with her type, she could sing and ..." he suddenly stopped, refraining from adding anything more when Tessa granted him with a pleading look. "Well, here we are. She has communicated to me details you may be interested in, like the place he's gonna make his so-called final deal with you. We've learned that Fuentes never gives the location of his transactions in advance. By chance, he spoke of this with one of his bodyguards, huh..." Dobey was looking at Tessa to get a confirmation of the name.

"Sebastian." she simply said.

"Just peachy!" Hutch intervened for the first time since they had entered the room. "What if someone inside finds out that three cops are trying to cheat with them. I think this whole situation is becoming very uncomfortable, Captain."

"You're too close to give up now. And from what Sergeant Harriman has told me, there is a good chance this case will be closed sooner than expected. So I advise you to cooperate. It's time she gets out. She has been deep into this for the good cause."

"Really deep, indeed!" Starsky said aggressively.

Tessa jumped on her seat and turned to him, only to grant him with the darkest look she could give.

"What are you insinuating, Detective?"

"I saw you swallow something at _The Rose_, between two songs. Did you get that far that you blended in really that deep?"

"I don't know what you..." she started to say, then she remembered and gave her voice a clear and totally reliable tone. "What you saw me swallow are anti-histamines. I'm allergic to dust, smoke, and a few more things. You can check if you want to. I've got prescriptions for these."

And saying so, she reached into her pocket and exhibited a packet of white pills. He started to read from the box.

"Brom..."

"Forget it, Detective. You may further check this with the doctor who prescribed them to me. Excuse me, Captain, are we here to discuss whether I'm an addict or to close this case as soon as possible?"

Dobey cleared his voice.

"Hutch, Starsky, why don't you take Ms Harriman to your office and exchange your data?"

Hutch was the first one to leave the office. Starsky looked at Tessa and remembered how he had felt when he had heard her singing at the nightclub. He felt some relaxation fill his chest. He was simply relieved that she was not on the hook. Yet he was also feeling a bit worried knowing that she was on the front line and so much exposed to danger.

"Can I offer you some coffee?" he said in a totally different tone than the one he had taken with her all along since they met in Dobey's office.

She looked at him and stood up from her chair.

"Yes please." Then she turned to the Captain. "Thank you, Captain. I think...I wish we could close this case, the sooner the better," she said while exchanging a very discreet look of connivance with him, which did not elude Starsky's trained eye. _They are hiding something. Why? The Captain has never hidden anything from us before?_

"Anything else, Captain?" he asked, trying to catch his superior by surprise and hoping he would disclose whatever he was keeping between him and Tessa. But the black man was far from being a rookie and he simply sent his detective back to his business.

"Now go and try to find the best way to put an end to this case."

"Yes, Sir. Shall we?" he said addressing Tessa.

S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~


	15. Chapter 15

**15**

Starsky invited the young girl to take his chair. She was looking a bit embarrassed and avoided to look at either detectives in the eyes. When she had seen the face of the brunet detective and made the connection with the dealers who had come to negotiate a new contract with Fuentes, she has felt a mixture of both anger and relief. She was angry because they were now three cops working undercover and no proper communication had been established between them from the start. This was normal standard procedure. And even without this, the common sense would have imposed a prior contact, if only to avoid any possible blunder. On the other hand, she had felt better to know they were both cops. After all the time she had spent in the vicinity of Fuentes and Rico, gathering all the information she could and forwarding it to Dobey, using all the discretion she was capable of not to be spotted out, she had felt pretty much isolated until she had recently decided to ask the BCPD Homicide section Captain to relieve her from this case if no quick solution was to be found.

She had made up an excuse for her morning absence to Fuentes and she had spent more than an hour in Dobey's office, early in the morning, trying to explain the limits she had reached and the reason she wanted out. He had found all the proper words to reassure her, without immediately mentioning his men, and had promised her the case would be nothing more than a memory in a couple of days.

And then, they had appeared, both of them, in this police reality, and they had looked like saviors. She felt better. Definitely better now. But she had a hard time to let all the tension fade away.

Starsky poured a cup of coffee and handed it to Tessa.

"Do you want some sugar?" he asked.

"Yes, please." He turned, took the sugar box and smiled when he saw her take two lumps and put them in her small plastic cup.

"My kinda gal!" he whispered very low while putting the sugar box back on the side table.

"What's that you said," Hutch questioned lightly.

"Huh... nothing;"

Starsky was trying not to stare at the brunette sitting on his chair, sipping a very sugary coffee and his mind started to wander. He was wondering what she was like when off duty. Was she as tough looking as she had been in Dobey's office? Was kind of music did she like? Did she like jogging in the park? _Okay, forget about that, last time I tried to exercise in the park, I burned my heart. Well, this is not like you're interested in the girl, as in – _I'd be lovely if we could go out to dinner together and maybe go to a place where we can dance and.._. - Davy boy, get a grip, she is a cop. I don't know what she was like in SD but the job she did here seems good enough to respect her and not jump on her like on a new casual prey._

He smiled for himself and was forced out of his reverie by the heavy silence that Hutch and Tessa had kept since he had put the sugar back in place.

"What?" Starsky asked. "Why are you staring at me like that?"

"No reason, pal, it's just that you seemed a million miles away for a while. You're okay?"

Hutch was speaking casually, but he had heard what his partner had said about the sugar and knew where his mind had been wandering during the last few seconds.

Starsky was on the verge of sending some humorous retort, but Minnie had just entered the squad room and headed for the detectives.

"Hello, you two!" she happily called.

"Hi Minnie, what brings you in our den?" Starsky questioned.

"Sorry, guys, I'm not coming to see you today. Oh, Starsky, please don't look too disappointed. I brought this file to one of your colleagues. Hello!" she politely nodded to the woman sitting in Starsky's chair.

"Hello." Tessa responded.

Minnie let a discreet smile raise the corners of her lips, but said nothing.

As she was obviously waiting for an official presentation, Hutch called out to Minnie "Why don't you deliver the file to whomever is waiting for it, Minnie?"

"Yeah... Sure."

She turned heels and went back to her business, put the files to a colleague and left the room, after she peeped inside one more time.

Starsky sat on the corner of his desk.

"Miss Harriman..." he started

"Please, call me Tessa."

"Tessa. We're supposed to meet Fuentes again before finalizing the... deal. What you have communicated to our Captain may be crucial for this operation to run smoothly and preventing anyone to get hurt."

"It's part of my job." she simply answered.

"You did more than your job." Hutch answered back in a gentle voice. "You infiltrate their circle and... How did you meet Fuentes anyway?"

"When it was decided to nail him down, I was... well I was planning to file a request for transfer anyway. I had visited this city quite often already, because a very good friend of mine moved here and she has inviting me over a lot. I like it here... the ocean and ..."

She stopped speaking, seeing the brunet detective stare at her.

"What? Did I say something wrong?" she asked.

"No. Please, go on. How did you get into Fuentes's circle?"

"People here had made a discreet survey of his travelling habit and hobbies, or to be more precise what kind of entertainment he cherished most. It happens that... well I love to sing and this was a criteria to charm him in the first place. You could say this was a cheap trick, but it worked. I sort of tumbled on him as if by chance and he took the bait."

"How do manage day-to-day living with this guy?" Hutch asked a bit worried.

"Oh, I don't live with him. I have my own apartment. You know, I feel more like an employee than anything else. I pretended to be addicted to some kind of illegal stuff to make it more believable, and in fact I take my regular dosage of antihistamines." she added giving a mocking look at Starsky.

"Sorry 'bout that, but it seemed so..." Starsky apologized.

"If I managed to fool you, I fooled them too from the start. So I know exactly how it seemed to you, Detective."

"Please, call me Dave."

"And I'm Hutch." replied the blonde with a smile. "Now the presentations are over, what are we gonna do?"

"We are gonna go on reconnaissance of the rendez-vous place and nail this Fuentes and his gang."

"Sounds simple enough." Tessa replied. "But do I have a strange feeling about all this."

"Why, piece of cake, you'll see." Starsky's voice was reassuring.

"Don't trust anyone. They are mean, especially Rico. He's a twisted and dangerous one, I can feel it."

Tessa's voice was now more brutal again.

"Hey, it's _us_. Don't start that verbal fencing again. Trust us. OK?"

"Sorry." Tessa tried to calm down and let out one big sigh. "I've been on the edge for quite a while and I guess I'm only wishing for an end to all this now. I never expected this mission to be so..."

She could not find the proper word and instead took a long gulp of her now cold coffee, holding the cup with both hands. At that precise moment she looked so fragile that Starsky had a hard time trying not to take her against him and comfort her. He simply put a hand on her shoulder.

"The moment you don't feel safe anymore, just call and we'll get you outa there, right?"

"But I never feel safe now, not with Rico around all the time. He is so... arrogant. And I think he is trying to set up something bad but I don't know what."

Hutch interrupted them.

"Huh, Tessa, are you supposed to be out of their sight for long? Don't you have to go back now? I'm sorry, I may sound a bit rude, but... your cover..."

"Yeah, you're right, I should be heading back to my apartment."

She stood up, handed the empty cup to Starsky.

"Thanks for the coffee and... everything."

"Hey, don't mention it. As soon as the slightest danger appears, give a big shout and the white knights will come to the rescue. I have named Burnett and Collins!" Starsky pompously recited, while extending his arms in the air, as if to embrace the whole universe.

"White Knights on a big red horse!" Hutch retorted amusingly.

"I prefer my big red horse to your poor emaciated rotting carcass."

Tessa looked at both and felt light-hearted while listening to their friendly fight.

"Be careful!" Starsky suddenly said as he saw her face. "You almost smiled there!"

Then she gave them a real big smile.

"I gotta go. Thanks again. See you around."

She shook their hands and left the room.

S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~

Someone at the other end of the room watched her leave and waited for a few seconds before going out too, in search of a phone.

After a couple of rings, a voice answered him.

"Yeah?"

"It's me."

"What's up?"

"I got some news for you. Tessa was here this morning. She first talked to the Captain. Then his two favorite boys joined.

"So what?"

"You're gonna love this. You know who the big boys are?"

"Shit, man, I don't like riddles. Spit it out!"

"Detectives David Starsky and Kenneth Hutchinson."

"Ah? And why am I supposed to love this?"

"Because in another life, they are also known as... Burnett and Collins."

There was a silence at the other end of the line.

"Good job. Thanks for the tip. I think indeed Mendoza is gonna love this."

"Anythng else?"

"Keep your eyes and ears open and call me if anything new shows up."

"Sure."

Both hung up at the same time. The one in BCPD smiled and went back to his daily tasks.

S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~


	16. Chapter 16

**16**

It was almost noon when Tessa reached her apartment. She had wandered in town, doing some window-shopping, looking at all the little things she thought about buying when she would move in for good. But her mind could not really concentrate on what she was looking at. She kept thinking about the conversation she had with Dobey in the morning and then with his men. The image of the brunet detective somehow imposed itself in her mind. But it felt like holding to an anchor; it was a bit weird in fact. She tried to ascertain what had triggered this sensation. Was it just that she had always been attracted to brunet guys more than to blonde ones? Maybe. But the truth was eluding her. It simply had to do with the fact that, after their verbal fight, she had inexplicably felt safe to know he was on the good side.

She absent-mindedly put a frozen pizza in the oven and turned the swtiches. She then headed for the couch and let her body fall on the cushions. She looked at the microphone under the lamp and smiled. She closed her eyes and started to sing, very softly, she was not even sure that whoever was listening at the other end of the line could make it out.

But she soon stopped whispering the melody. She tried to summarize all that happened during the last few hours. She was a cop undercover on a case in a strange city. Two more cops were on the same case. Fuentes was not clear regarding his intentions to run the business for long in the area. Rico was up to something she could not figure out yet, but it certainly was nothing sweet and gentle. Matt was like a mosquito, buzzing around Rico and spying on everyone. Seb was too quiet and uneventful to worry her. The only one she felt at ease with was Bernie. How she hated to have been forced to lie to him. He was the one she trusted implicitly and she promised herself to make it up to him, when the case would be closed, when she was out of that mess, when... if...

The small of melted mozzarella snapped her awake and she put the pizza on a large plate and started to eat. When she was done, she cleaned the dishes. Looking around her, she suddenly felt more than before she was in somebody else's place; this was not hers. She remembered her own furniture, the plants she had bought over the years and made her own place almost look like a jungle. She remembered the big poster she had had printed from one of her own photos she took when on a trip to San Francisco and representing the Bridge at dawn, surrounded by a delicate pink fog...She let an ironic smile escape her lips when she also remembered there were no microphones in her own apartment, spying on her day and night, installed by someone she had not yet identified. This last thought brought her mind back to reality. Or was it the persistent knock on the door?

When she opened the door, she saw the last person she wanted to see right now.

S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~

Rico was smiling his fake gentle smile and did not wait for her invitation to penetrate in the apartment.

Tessa made a slow turn, still standing by the open door, as if she was actually seeing him out.

Rico turned to face her, saw he was obviously not welcome, smiled a large content smile and installed in the couch, with both arms extended on the head rest on each side.

Tessa closed the door, gave Rico a somewhat contained nasty look. She could not help herself, but even if she knew all this circus would be over soon, the only thing she wanted to do in this instant was to slap him in the face real hard.

"Why are you so nervous, Tessie?"

She felt a shiver down her spine and forced herself to answer as gently as she could. _No need to get him angry and provoke him, I don't know how far he could get..._

"I'm not. It's just that I did not expect you visit, Rico and... I've got some things to take care of before going to _The Rose_."

"What kind of things?" Rico said in a paused tone, looking around. "The apartment's just fine, you look great... Why don't you come here and sit next to me?" he added, tapping the couch next to him to invite her closer.

"Rico... I... don't think so." she felt stuck and wanted to find an excuse to make him leave.

As he saw she was determined to avoid him, he stood up and walked to her. Tessa felt a glacial shiver all over her body and her muscles hardened, preparing for an assault or an escape, depending on what Rico had in mind. When he was close enough, he reached for her and softly caressed her cheek with his right hand, while he tried to take her right hand in his left one. She could not avoid to start back and he tightened his grip on her right hand.

"Don't fight me, Tessie, the last thing I have in mind is hurting you, Babe. Come closer. Don't be afraid."

And saying so, he pulled her close to his chest and searched for her lips. Unable to stand the proximity of this man she had hated from the start and because, most of all, she was not who she was supposed to be, she violently turned her head away from him but his right hand, still in her cheek, forced her to face him and he pressed his lips against hers. She squeezed her mouth shut to avoid any further exploration and tried to pull away from his embrace.

She felt a wave of great relief when she felt his body pull way from her. He was still smiling that wicked smile and completely let go of his grip.

"Another time, Babe. You'll see, you'll like it, I promise."

And without another word or look at Tessa, who was now breathing heavily, he left, smashing the door behind him.

S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~

When Rico reached the car, he somehow let his long contained frustration spill on Matt who was patiently waiting behind the wheel.

He thought some news would bring a bit of peace in Rico's heart.

"Boss, I've got some news about the Burnett and Collins guys."

"Not now!" the short man shouted. "She's nothing more than a high class whore and I'm gonna have her, one away or another."

"That's what I wanted to talk to you about."

"WHAT?!" Rico's face was turning red. He was so imbedded in his fury that he did not understand that Matt wanted to speak about the new guys on the deal. "What do you mean?"

"Burnett and Collins. I got a phone call from someone who saw them this morning."

"Oh yeah? And why am I supposed to be interested in that kinda news, huh?"

"Because they were seen... at the Metropolitan Police Department."

Rico turned his head, very slowly, to face Matt and his eyes went cold as ice, half shut, his jaws were suddenly very tensed.

"At BCPD? That's... interesting. And how do you know?"

"They're cops, Rico! A friend of mine is working there and he called me to inform me as soon as he found out who they were talking to. Their real names are Starsky and Hutchinson. There was... there was something familiar about that Burnett guy, but I could not put my finger on it. I'm sure I met him before, but I still can't remember where."

"Hmm, so we need to change our strategy a bit about these guys... Don't say a word of this to my dear Uncle, you understand me?"

"Yess, Boss, but..."

"But what? Oh yeah, who were they talking to, by the way?" Rico was now more than exasperated.

"Tessa. They were talking to Tessa."

Rico almost choked hearing the last bit of information.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. He described her and it matches perfectly."

"May be they arrested her for another reason than being the girlfriend of a drug lord, huh?"

"I don't think so. From what my informant told me, they were having a casual if not amicable conversation."

Rico stared in front of him, at nothing, trying to organize the thoughts in his head.

"So, apart from being a hard-to-please bitch, she is an informant too. Damn her!" he almost shouted, turning his head and looking at the apartment where the young woman had just turned him down.

After a long moment of silence, he had found his composure again.

"I'm gonna nail this little bitch. And I'm gonna talk to these two dummies. They'll never see the trap until they fall into it, head and toes! Drive! I need to think straight about this. Yeah... This could be the perfect opportunity to get rid of all who stand in my way... in just one single trip. What do you know? Chance will serve me this time. Yes... Drive now!"

Matt started the ignition and drove Rico back to his place.

When he dropped Ricardo, Matt Perkins headed for his own place and, while driving, remembered the face of the one he had met as Mike Burnett. There was something about the curly hair detective which was vaguely familiar. He had sensed something during their first encounter but had not been able to put his finger on it. All of a sudden, something clicked and he almost lost control of the car.

"Shit! That's him!" he exclaimed.

Now all the memories were invading his mind. The little curly haired boy. The streets of New York. The fights between little kids in the neighborhood. Everything was coming into place like all the pieces of a puzzle.

S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~ S*H ~


End file.
